The Pesticide DDT was used during WWII to stop mosquitoes from
spreading diseases such as malaria. It was also used as an insecticide
for agriculture.

But
the government took environmental initiatives and banned the use of it
in the 1970’s because it was found to cause cancer in humans and
decreased the eggshell reproductive quality in birds such as the bald
eagle.

And in a recent article by BBC News it was found that DDT was responsible for premature puberty in girls from developing countries.

So if it was banned over 40 years ago, why is it still showing up in the tissue of Antarctic penguins?

Frozen Findings

According to Heidi Geisz and other researchers from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science,
the levels of DDT found in the tissue of these penguins have remained
the same since the early 1970s. And even though the levels are not
enough to kill the penguins, it could be enough to decrease the quality
of their eggs.

The levels of DDT have remained the same for so long because the pesticide is a part of the life cycle of Antarctica.

The DDT is evaporated into the air, it becomes trapped in glaciers
and it is absorbed into tiny krill. As the temperature warms and melts
the glaciers, the penguins eat the krill and then have the pesticide in
their system.

You can read the entire article here.

That means the penguins have to worry about global warming and DDT, both of which are destroying their natural habitats.

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