Every spring, Dr. Carl Isaacson, a professor of environmental studies at Bemidji State University, sends his students out to collect perch from waters across Minnesota. Then, they study an egg yolk protein found in the perchs’ livers, called vitellogenin, which may provide evidence of endocrine disruption in the state’s aquatic species. Over the past few
Decades ago several bird species in the Great Lakes—including the iconic bald eagle—faced an uncertain future because toxic chemicals were threatening their populations. While several bans and policies have offered some protection, the same chemicals threatening these birds 60 years ago continue to accumulate in their bodies—and new chemical threats are adding to their toxic