Pigeons, birds often abhorred by city dwellers, could well help us fight against the heavy metal pollution. The city of New York publishes a study that should restore the image of these sedentary birds. The works, published in Chemosphere magazine, reveal that the level of lead recorded on a panel of birds is similar to that observed in children exposed to this pollutant. In other words, these urban birds could serve as warning “launchers” to measure environmental pollution in the towns.
“Pigeons breathe the same air, walk the same sidewalks and often eat the same things as us. What if we could use them to monitor possible environmental hazards to our health, such as lead pollution?” asked Rebecca Calisi, a researcher in the Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior at theUniversity of California Davis.
Pigeons to geolocate pollutants
To prove that her hypothesis was not wavering, the scientist studied blood samples taken from 825 sick or injured pigeons brought to the New York City Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center from 2010 to 2015.
The results showed that the level of lead found in the blood of the birds increases in summer, similar to children exposed to lead. Similarly, elevated lead levels in pigeons have also been observed in children exposed to this pollutant. This correlation between children’s lead levels and birds has never been pointed out before.
“This strongly proves that we can use pigeons to monitor the location and prevalence of pollutants. We can use it to examine the dangers of pollution to human health,” Rebecca Calisi concluded in the study.
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