Mockingbirds show heightened aggression after lead exposure

Mockingbirds exposed to sub-lethal levels of lead in urban areas display significantly heightened aggression, said Morris Animal Foundation-funded researchers at Tulane University. “There’s considerable lead contamination in soils around the world and that means literally billions of animals, both urban wildlife and pets, are likely exposed at sub-lethal levels,” said Dr. Jordan Karubian, Associate Professor at Tulane University’s Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. For the study, the team used simulated territorial intrusion on dozens of northern mockingbirds in urban New Orleans neighborhoods with either low or high levels of lead in the soil.

Source: www.eurekalert.org