Scientists have discovered the world’s most polluted bird in Canada — a Cooper’s hawk whose liver is so full of flame retardant chemicals that it has been dubbed ‘flameproof’. A team of Canadian researchers made this startling discovery while analysing liver samples from birds of prey that were discovered either injured or dead in Greater Vancouver.
The levels of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the contaminated Cooper’s hawk were 196 parts per million, significantly higher than those recorded in birds found either in cities in California or in an electronic waste site in China, researchers said. PBDEs are a group of chemicals that act as flame retardants and were once used widely in computers, stereos, televisions, vehicles, carpets and furniture.