Total mercury in wild felids occurring in protected areas in the central Brazilian Amazon

Abstract

<jats:p>ABSTRACT This is the first study to investigate mercury (Hg) contamination in felid species in the Brazilian Amazon. We collected 26 fur samples from wild felids of four species (Puma concolor, Panthera onca, Leopardus pardalis and Leopardus wiedii) occurring in the Mamirauá and Amanã sustainable development reserves, in the state of Amazonas. Samples were from museum specimens, except for five P. onca samples collected from free-living individuals. Total Hg concentrations ranged from 0.12 to 48.1 µg g-1. Concentrations of Hg did not differ significantly between museum specimens and live individuals of P. onca, but varied significantly among species, with significantly higher concentrations for P. onca and L. pardalis, which could be related to factors such as diet and habitat.</jats:p>

Potencial do Uso de Amostras Fecais de Felinos como Ferramenta de Monitoramento Ambiental: Estudo de Caso no Parque Nacional da Serra dos Órgãos

“…Além da presença e uso do espaço, outras informações importantes para a conservação dos felinos podem ser obtidas a partir de suas amostras fecais, como sua dieta (Bianchi et al, 2011;Rocha-Mendes et al, 2010;Santos, 2014;Wang, 2002), saúde (Dib et al, 2018(Dib et al, , 2020, razão sexual e estimativas de tamanho populacional (Miotto et al, 2014;Pilgrim et al, 2005), bem como a avaliação de parentesco entre indivíduos e o grau de isolamento populacional (Miotto et al, 2011;Saranholi et al, 2017). Além disso, pelos de mamíferos são bons acumuladores de substâncias contaminantes devido ao seu crescimento lento, e carnívoros, como predadores de topo de cadeia, estão entre os organismos mais afetados pela magnificação trófica de poluentes, como mercúrio e poluentes orgânicos persistentes (Carvalho et al, 2020;Lopes et al, 2020).…”

High levels of mercury contamination in a necrophage dung beetle of the Amazon rainforest (Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae)

“…In Peru, since the 1950s, more than 180 metric tons of Hg have been discharged annually by artisanal and small‐scale gold mining (ASGM) (Cardo & Vargas, 2017; Velásquez Ramírez et al, 2021; Gerson et al, 2022), especially in the highly biodiverse Madre de Dios River Basin, in the Southeastern region of the Peruvian Amazon, resulting in almost 100,000 deforested hectares in 2018 (Espejo et al, 2018). Most studies on Hg pollution, bioaccumulation and biomagnification have focused on aquatic ecosystems and their different components (Hacon et al, 2020; Nyholt et al, 2022; Schneider et al, 2012), while studies on the presence of Hg and its impact on terrestrial ecosystems, especially tropical forests, have only recently begun (Carrasco‐Rueda et al, 2020; Gerson et al, 2022; Lopes et al, 2020; Yung et al, 2019; Zhou et al, 2016). There is some evidence that Hg bioaccumulation and biomagnification in terrestrial invertebrates are related to trophic levels (Yung et al, 2019; Zhou et al, 2016).…”