Dear colleagues, My coauthors and I are excited to share our new open-access publication analysing PFAS in 16 odontocete species in New Zealand: Stockin KA, Peters KJ, Saltré F, Machovsky-Capuska GE, Betty EL, Tremblay LA, Yi S (2025). No place to hide: Marine habitat does not determinate per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in odontocetes. Science of the Total Environment 1007:180701. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180701 Abstract As meso- and apex predators in food webs, marine mammals can bioconcentrate persistent environmental contaminants like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Although the presence of PFAS is widely reported in the marine environment, there is a lack of data for cetaceans in Oceania. We investigated whether ecological habitat influences bioconcentration patterns across a range of odontocete (toothed whale, dolphin and porpoise) species. We measured PFAS in liver samples (n = 127) from 16 cetacean species representing four families inhabiting four marine habitats along the Aotearoa New Zealand coastline. We analysed six perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids, ten perfluoroalkyl sulphonic acids and four precursor compounds in the context of sex, body index, habitat and species/family using generalized linear mixed models. Results showed that marine habitat remained a weak predictor of PFAS burden. Instead, biological factors including sex and age class best explained the levels of PFAS detected across all species and habitats. We offer first important insights on PFAS levels across several new taxa globally, including endemic endangered species and poorly described polar vagrants. Our findings further highlight how the ubiquitous nature of PFAS pose a higher risk to odontocetes across different seascapes than previously anticipated. The paper is available open-access at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180701 For a lighter read, please see the accompanying article in The Conversation<https://theconversation.com/forever-chemicals-contaminate-more-dolphins-and-whales-than-we-thought-new-research-269928>. All the best, Katharina Dr Katharina J Peters Lecturer in Biological Sciences Marine Vertebrate Ecology Lab<https://www.mavelab.org/> Environmental Futures, School of Science | Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health | 35.G01D University of Wollongong NSW 2522 Australia T +61 2 4239 2058 E katharina_peters@uow.edu.au<mailto:katharina_peters@uow.edu.au> MAVELab<https://katharinajpeters.weebly.com/> | UOW Profile<https://scholars.uow.edu.au/katharina-peters> | GoogleScholar<https://scholar.google.com.au/citations?user=7QWvsMUAAAAJ&hl=en> | ResearchGate<https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Katharina_Peters> | GitHub<https://github.com/kjopeters?tab=following> | Instagram<https://www.instagram.com/mave_lab/> | LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharina-j-peters-b47b5370/?trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile_pic> [A dolphin and dolphin in a circle Description automatically generated]<http://www.mavelab.org/>[A blue circle with text and a shield Description automatically generated] On the lands and waters that we study, we walk, and we live, we acknowledge and respect the Traditional Custodians and cultural knowledge holders of these lands. This email is intended for the addressee name and may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, please delete it and notify the sender. UOW CRICOS: 00102E | TEQSA Provider ID: PRV12062 | ABN: 61 060 567 686 I may send emails outside of ‘normal’ working hours but please know that I do not expect a response outside of your own working hours.
