WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- A dangerous toxin known to affect humans was identified for the first time in a marine mammal species, a critically endangered Hawaiian seal, researchers say.
Researchers from National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration have discovered the potent and highly-debilitating toxin ciguatoxin in the endangered Hawaiian monk seal, a first-of-its-kind chemical finding prompting investigations of other marine mammals in the state, a NOAA release said Wednesday.