#platypus — Public Fediverse posts

Safeguarding Bellingen rivers and coast
https://bellingenshirenews.com.au/2025/12/04/new-plan-to-safeguard-bellingen-rivers/

Explore the responsible visitor tips:
"Watch your pooch when it poops: One 10 cent-sized piece of dog waste contains 23 million faecal coliform bacteria – rain washes it into rivers and harms wildlife. Bag it, bin it, keep our waterways clean."
https://www.visitbellingenshire.com.au/Plan/Tips-on-how-to-explore-with-care

The Gleniffer Valley is a beautiful place, but..
http://www.bellingennow.com/about/index.html
#water #rivers #Bellingen #BellingenShire #BellingerRiverSnappingTurtle #shorebirds #platypus #biodiversity #wildlife #ecosystems #PromisedLands #Gleniffer #dogs #pets #waste

NSW platypuses are accumulating the “forever chemical” perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in very high concentrations.

"The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi-aquatic monotreme that occupies a high trophic position in the freshwater ecosystems of eastern mainland Australia and Tasmania. Platypuses are continuously exposed to anthropogenic contaminants including perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS). This study examined PFOS concentrations in the livers of deceased platypuses (eight wild; one captive) that were opportunistically collected across NSW over a two- and a half-year period. There was a large variation in PFOS concentrations, ranging from < 1 µg/kg to 1200 µg/kg. This study presents the first report of PFOS contamination in platypuses, revealing their PFOS levels are broadly similar to those found in river otters (Lutra canadensis) and lower than those in American mink (Mustela vison), both which occupy similar ecological niches in freshwater systems. This study raises concerns about the impact of PFOS on platypus health."

"Platypuses are vulnerable to many impacts associated with human activity including hydrological changes, decline in water quality, increase in litter and discarded fishing line, illegal opera house nets (yabby traps) and water contamination...There are no guidelines on what constitutes safe concentrations of PFOS in wildlife."

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Warwick, K.G., Wright, I.A., Whinfield, J. et al. First report of accumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) in New South Wales, Australia. Environ Sci Pollut Res 31, 51037–51042 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-34704-w
#pollution #water #rivers #contamination #NSW #Wildlife #platypus #platypuses #penguins #PFOS #PFAS #ForeverChemicals #Gleniffer #bellingen #NeverNever #bellinger #catchment #AquaticInvertebrates #DrinkingWater #FoodChain #SyntheticChemicals