The organic derivatives of phenol are classed as dangerous compounds, and their presence has been detected in surface water, bottom water, phytoplankton, zooplankton, and mussel as well as liver and muscle of fish from the Gulf of Gdańsk and in liver, muscle, and guano of gulls residing in the coastal zone of this basin. The greatest sources of bisphenol A (BPA), 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), and 4-nonylphenol (NP) were found to be the Vistula River and the water purification plant in Dębogórze. In living organisms, concentrations of BPA, OP, and NP ranged between the limit of quantification and several hundred ng g−1 dry weight (dw), and the highest concentrations were found for BPA. Prolonged alimentary exposure to BPA, OP, and NP in fish and birds was indicated by liver/muscle concentration ratios generally >1. The most influential factors on BPA and alkylphenol concentrations in the tissues of fishes and gulls were mainly diet and habitat. The study confirmed possible bioaccumulation in the food web. High BPA and NP concentrations in guano (≤2,700 and ≤300 ng g−1 dw, respectively) indicated the ability of birds to detoxify and signalled the reintroduction of these compounds to seawater. Herring, flounder, and cod from the Southern Baltic are a safe food source for human consumption because their BPA and alkylphenol contents are low.

Aquatic birds are often used as a health indicator of the marine ecosystem. African penguins living in the zoo make good research material as they form a link between the marine and the terrestrial ecosystem in terms of xenobiotic circulation. Tests were performed on whole herring—the food of the penguins—as well as on bird muscle, liver, brain, eggs, feathers and guano in order to determine total mercury, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, isodrin, endosulfan isomers, endosulfan sulfate, methoxychlor, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and its metabolites. In herring and penguin, the tests did not show the presence of β-endosulfan, endosulfan sulfate, aldrin and isodrin. It was shown that penguins absorb about 36.8 μg of organochlorine pesticides and 4.6 μg of mercury with their food on a daily basis. Xenobiotics accumulate mostly in the liver, from where they are transported to the muscle and the brain, where the highest bioaccumulation factor is reached by endrin and pp’-DDT. Conceivably, the older the penguin, the higher is the concentration level of pesticides in its liver and brain. Molting was found to be the most effective way of eliminating mercury, dieldrin and methoxychlor from the system. Insecticides, such as DDT and its metabolites, were removed most effectively by females through laying of eggs. The standard four eggs laid within a year may have contained up to 20 % of the total amount of pesticides which had been absorbed with food, but no more than 5 % of mercury.

This study presents total mercury concentrations (HgT) in selected tissues and organs (blood, muscles, liver, kidneys, feathers and claws) of the herring gull (Larus argentatus) in order to assess the environmental pollution in the coastal zone of the southern Baltic. Dead, frozen birds were collected in the vicinity of Wladysławowo between December 2009 and March 2010, an exceptionally severe winter − a total of 13 specimens; 6 adults (>4 years old) and 7 immature birds (≤4 years old). Mercury concentrations in all analyzed samples exceeded the detection limit. The lowest average concentration, at a level of 0.4 μg Hg g -1 (d.w.) was observed in the muscles of adult and immature gulls while the highest, at a level of 3.3 μg Hg g -1 (d.w), was determined in the contour of immature gulls. A significant

The aim of this study was to estimate the residue of chlorinated pesticides in the edible fish caught in the Gulf of Gdańsk and in the Vistula Lagoon. The highest mean concentrations of total DDT were found in the muscles of salmon (331.45 ng g -1 lw.) and sabre carp (306.29 ng g -1 lw.) caught in the Vistula Lagoon, and in the muscles of cod (309.88 ng g -1 lw.) and herring (304.86 ng g -1 lw.) from the Gulf of Gdańsk. Moreover, it was discovered that the following were present in the muscles of fish: DDT metabolites (pp'-DDE and pp'-DDD isomers) as well as hexachlorobenzene and its metabolites and endrin, dieldrin, α-endosulfan isomers and methoxychlor. Pesticides concentrations were higher in the livers of fish than in the muscles, which proves that the removal of toxins from the fish systems dominates over their accumulation. Because no concentration limits for pesticides have been defined, consumer safety assessment of fish caught in the Southern Baltic and in the Vistula Lagoon is not possible. The authors, having

Abstract. Birds due to its position in the trophic chain are good monitors of the marine environment in terms of mercury contamination. For the proper interpretation of results it is necessary to know both the processes of accumulation of this metal in their bodies and processes of elimination. Research involving the Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) living in a ZOO has identified the relationship between diet and the amount of mercury removed from the penguin body in guano, feathers, and in the case of females with eggs. The research was conducted in years 2009-2011. Total mercury was determined in elements responsible for detoxification and in the diet of penguins. Mercury concentration was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry with AMA-254 automatic mercury analyzer. The highest average mercury concentrations were determined in feathers: 1781.12 ngHg