\n Published on
\n 30\/11\/2025 – 8:00 GMT+1\n <\/p>\n
Marine mammals aren\u2019t \u201cimmune from the burden\u201d of toxic forever chemicals, even if they live below the ocean\u2019s surface.<\/p>\n
New research published in Science of the Total Environment has raised alarm bells over the long-term health of marine species, after deep-sea dolphins and whales were found with \u201cunprecedented\u201d levels of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination.<\/p>\n
These are human-made chemicals found in items such as stain-resistant fabrics, non-stick cookware and food packaging. They are often referred to as ‘forever chemicals’ because they take thousands of years to degrade naturally.<\/p>\n
\u2018No place to hide\u2019 from PFAS<\/p>\n
While many assume that a deep-sea home provides protection from PFAS,<\/a> scientists found that habitats are actually a poor predictor of concentration levels.<\/p>\n It comes after scientists analysed tissues from 127 animals across 16 species of toothed whales and dolphins in New Zealand\u2019s water. This included bottlenose dolphins and deep-diving sperm whales<\/a>.<\/p>\n For eight of the 16 species, including New Zealand’s endemic Hector’s dolphin and three species of beaked whales<\/a>, this was a global first for PFAS assessment.<\/p>\n Dr Katharina Peters, a marine ecologist and research leader of the University of Wollongong’s (UOW) Marine Vertebrate Ecology Lab, explains that these animals were selected as whales and dolphins are often considered \u201cindicator species\u201d that reflect their ecosystem.<\/p>\n \u201cWe expected that species feeding mainly in deep water, like sperm whales, would have lower PFAS contamination than coastal species like Hector’s dolphins, which are closer to pollution sources,\u201d Peters adds.<\/p>\n \u201cOur analyses show that this is not the case. There really seems to be no place to hide from PFAS.\u201d<\/p>\n A \u2018threat\u2019 to marine diversity<\/p>\n