Researchers in Finland, at the University of Turku, did a study on the effects of smog on the great tit, (Parus major). They found that sulfur and heavy metals from a copper smelter in Harjavalta, Finland, kill Green caterpillars. These caterpillars are important to the great tit in that they provide the pigments that are the key to their sexual attractiveness (i.e. yellow breast plumage). Therefore, due to the smog's devastation, the birds' reproduction rate is declining. Also, air pollution has indirectly decreased the weight of the birds by decreasing the population of the Green caterpillars.
The moral of the great tit story is that smog has a devastating effect on many living organisms. Therefore, the need for emissions controls to prevent further contamination of the air is essential.
This website is a collaboration of presentations by A. Petrovic and E. Cox for their Environmental Chemistry class at Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA.
We hope that you can gain some insight into the world of smog and that you enjoy our site!
