PORT TOWNSEND — A Northwest Fisheries Science Center researcher will talk about a range of contaminants currently found in orca populations, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and ether flame retardants Thursday.
Gina Ylitalo’s lecture will be at 7 p.m. at the Port Townsend Marine Science Center’s Natural History Exhibit at Fort Worden State Park.
The potential health effects of these toxins on other marine mammal species, including fish, will be discussed.
Ylitalo was one of the scientists who analyzed the body of the orca, CA 189, that was found stranded near Dungeness Spit in 2002 and whose skeleton the marine science center will display in its new Ocean Science Hall.
The center kicked off its Orca Project Capital Campaign in October to raise money for the exhibition hall.
The Dungeness Spit orca’s blubber contained a level of contaminants that was among the highest — if not the highest — ever measured in orcas, scientists said.
The PCB level discovered in the orca was dozens of times higher than concentrations know to affect the growth, reproduction and immune system of another marine mammal, the harbor seal.
Ylitalo will present information on contemporary levels of persistent organic compounds, such as polybrominated diphenyl ether flame retardants, measured in Southern Resident orcas and other North Pacific orca populations.
Ylitalo has worked for the Northwest Fisheries Science Center since 1989.
Her current interests include establishing links between exposure to chemical contaminants and potential health effects on marine mammals and fish.
She also works on methods for analyzing new contaminants in marine resources.
Admission to the presentation is $7 for adults and $5 for youths, with marine science center members receiving a discount of $2.
For more information, visit www.ptmsc.org.
