RMP Technical Report and Estuary News Article on Bird Egg Monitoring (June 2016)
Jul 19, 2016
Birds are valuable sentinel species in water quality monitoring in the Bay and in programs around the world, including the Great Lakes, the Canadian arctic, and the Baltic Sea. The RMP monitors a broad suite of contaminants in the eggs of Double-crested Cormorants and Forster’s Terns. Eggs are collected on a three-year cycle. The latest round of egg collections occurred this spring. Long-term declines in PBDEs, DDT, and dioxins have been observed. Concentrations of PCBs and PFOS have been highest in the Lower South Bay.
More Information
The RMP has just published a technical report summarizing the long-term dataset.
An article on this monitoring (“Mixed News from Eggs”) appears in the latest (June 2016) edition of Estuary News.
Programs and Focus Areas:
Clean Water Program
Bay Regional Monitoring Program