It’s Good to Know: Toxic Waste Is for the Birds
Scientists at Cardiff University have found that male starlings develop superior singing ability after being exposed to an estrogen-like toxic waste. Because singing is a sign of virility among birds, the pollutant-enhanced males attract more females. It turns out the toxic waste changes the part of the birds’ brains associated with singing. Of course, the news isn’t all good for the animal kingdom. When the same chemicals pollute streams and rivers, they have been known to turn male fish into hermaphrodites.
Throw off the delicate balance of hormones in birds, fish, animals – or people – and you never know what will happen. (Male athletes who abuse steroids – which mimic testosterone and other "male" hormones – often wind up with results that are less than virile.)
(Source: Wired )
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