Shrimp-like creatures living in the deepest parts of the oceans contain high levels of man-made toxins, scientists said on Monday.
Tiny crustaceans, such as yellowish Hirondellea gigas living in darkness about 10,000 meters (33,000 ft) down in the Pacific Ocean, are polluted by PCBs, used in electric transformers or paints, and PBDE chemicals used as flame retardants.
"Pollutants were there in every single sample, regardless of depth, regardless of species," said Alan Jamieson, lead author of a report in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution by a team mainly from the University of Aberdeen.