Analysis of 11 trace elements in flight feathers of Italian Sparrows in southern Italy: A study of bioaccumulation through age classes, variability in three years of sampling, and relations with body condition

Innangi, Michele; Rosa, Davide De; Danise, Tiziana; Fozzi, Ilaria; Giannotti, Marcello; Izzo, Marilena; Trifuoggi, Marco; Fioretto, A.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.105

Cited by 14 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…In spite of differences in elemental fingerprint between wintering and breeding areas, no significant difference in the concentration of any element was detected according to sex or to the sex by feather growth location interaction both in multivariate (Table 2) and univariate analyses (Table 3). These results are consistent with previous studies of different passerine species, including the northern cardinals Cardinalis cardinalis and the great crested flycatchers Myiarchus crinitus (Cooper et al 2017), the collared flycatcher (Óvári et al 2018) and the Italian sparrow (Innangi et al 2019), reporting that sex-specific differences were not observed for different trace elements accumulated in feathers. The lack of sex-specific differences in the elemental fingerprint of barn swallow feathers suggests that the bioaccumulation rates of trace elements are consistent between both the sexes (Cooper et al 2017), probably because males and females use the habitats and exploit the same diet in both wintering and breeding areas (Møller 1994;Turner 2006;Liechti et al 2015).…”

Section: Sex-specific Differences In Trace Element Levelssupporting

confidence: 93%

“…The average concentration of trace elements accumulated in tail feathers of barn swallows decreased as follows: Al > Fe > Zn > Cu > Mn > Ni > Pb > Hg > Se > Cr > As > Cd. The levels and the elemental fingerprint observed in the present study were similar to those measured in feathers of diverse passerine species breeding in other geographical areas, including great tits Parus major from Belgium (Veerle et al 2004), collared flycatchers from Hungary (Óvári et al 2018), sand martins from different European breeding areas (Vallner et al 2000,;Szép et al 2003) and Italian sparrows Passer italiae from southern Italy (Innangi et al 2019), while they differed compared to those measured in tail feathers collected from house sparrows Passer domesticus living in southern Africa (Baker et al 2017). The toxic elements included in the priority list of contaminants of 2013/39/EU directive for surface water, namely Cd, Hg, Ni and Pb, were above the detection limit in all samples, with the exception of Cd.…”

Section: Levels Of Trace Elements In Barn Swallow Featherssupporting

confidence: 83%

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Trace elements fingerprint of feathers differs between breeding and non-breeding areas in an Afro-Palearctic migratory bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Parolini

Sturini

Maraschi

et al. 2020

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Trace elements are widespread contaminants that can potentially threaten ecosystems and human health. Considering their distribution and toxicity, monitoring their presence in animals represents a priority in environmental risk assessment. Migratory birds have been suggested to be useful biomonitors for trace elements because they can provide information on contaminants even from remote areas that they may exploit during their life cycle. The aim of this study was to analyse the contamination fingerprint of trace elements of African non-breeding staging grounds and European breeding areas in a long-distance migratory passerine bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). We collected feathers grown in the African non-breeding grounds and those grown in the breeding areas of Northern Italy and measured the levels of 12 trace elements (Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se and Zn) by DRC-ICP-MS. Multivariate analysis showed that elemental profiles of feathers grown in African non-breeding areas and in the Italian breeding ones clearly differed, with feathers grown in Africa showing higher concentrations of Al, Cu, Fe, Mn and Ni, but lower concentrations of As, Se and Zn, compared to those grown in Italy. In addition, levels of trace elements were age-dependent, with higher levels in older individuals than in younger ones. Our results add to the growing evidence that feathers of long-distance migratory birds are useful tools to monitor trace elements contamination profiles across continents.

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Section: Sex-specific Differences In Trace Element Levelssupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Levels Of Trace Elements In Barn Swallow Featherssupporting

confidence: 83%

Trace elements fingerprint of feathers differs between breeding and non-breeding areas in an Afro-Palearctic migratory bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Parolini

Sturini

Maraschi

et al. 2020

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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“…Flight feathers (such as primary feathers) have been employed to monitor heavy metal pollution in many studies (Martínez et al ; Varela et al ; Innangi et al ). Hence, primary feathers of nestlings, juveniles, adults in summer, and adults in winter were collected from Liujiaxia and Baiyin.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Metal Exposure Risk Assessment for Tree Sparrows at Different Life Stages via Diet from a Polluted Area in Northwestern China

Yang

Ding

et al. 2019

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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To estimate the risk of metal (Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cd) exposure of tree sparrows through food at different life stages (including nestling, juvenile, adult in summer, and adult in winter), metal daily intake (MDI), metal daily intake per unit of body weight (MDIBW), and exposure risks (hazard quotient and hazard index) of tree sparrows at different life stages from a polluted area, Baiyin, and a control area, Liujiaxia, were assessed. Metal daily intakes and MDIBWs of tree sparrows from Baiyin were higher than those from Liujiaxia, which can be attributed to higher metal concentrations of food sources in Baiyin than those in Liujiaxia. Metal daily intakes and MDIBWs of nestlings were higher than those of adults and juveniles. This difference is observed probably because nonphytophagous invertebrates, the predominant food fed to nestlings, possessed the highest metal concentrations. In addition, adults in summer had higher MDIs and MDIBWs than juveniles and adults in winter. This finding is probably observed because juveniles and adults in winter consumed a higher proportion of maize, which had the lowest metal concentrations. In addition, the biomagnification of 4 metals through the food chain increased the health risks of tree sparrows. Exposure risks of tree sparrows to metals were comparable to those of waterfowl and raptors, even when soil metals were below threshold. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:2785–2796. © 2019 SETAC

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“…Regarding wildlife exposure to chemical compounds, age is an important factor to be considered (Squadrone et al 2016). Studies indicate that metal concentration in several tissues are frequently higher in adult birds (Burger and Gochfeld 1995;Leonzio et al 2009 2019) because of long-term exposure to contaminated environments and consequent bioaccumulation (Grúz et al 2018;Innangi et al 2019). As the feathers of young individuals are recently formed and are less exposed to atmospheric conditions, they have smaller concentrations of metals (Dauwe et al 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential Use of Distinct Biomarkers (Trace Metals, Micronuclei and Nuclear Abnormalities) in a Heterogeneous Sample of Birds in Southern Brazil.

Tomazelli

Rodrigues

Franco

et al. 2021

Preprint

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The analysis of metal concentrations in feathers and the micronuclei (MN) and other nuclear abnormalities (NA) test in birds are tools used for evaluating the impacts that anthropogenic actions have been causing to the environment and organisms. Here we used these biomarkers to investigate the response of birds to disturbances observed in three areas with different environmental characteristics (natural, agricultural and urban) in southern Brazil. We obtained a diverse sample (108 individuals from 25 species and 17 families) without significant differences in metal concentrations, frequency of MN and AN between sampling points. The concentrations of zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) were significantly different between trophic guilds (Zn: p = 0.0006, Cu: p = 0.04) and age classes (Zn: p = 0.01, Cu: p = 0.03). Omnivore birds contributed to the increase in the number of MN (∆AICc: 0.00; w = 0.40) and NA, which was also influenced by age classes and body condition index (BCI) (∆AICc: 0.00; w = 0.34; ∆AICc: 0.89; w = 0.22; ∆AICc: 1.15; w = 0.19; ∆AICc: 1.33; w = 0.18). We showed that in a diverse sample of birds, the variables analyzed affected each biomarker in distinct ways.

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Analysis of 11 trace elements in flight feathers of Italian Sparrows in southern Italy: A study of bioaccumulation through age classes, variability in three years of sampling, and relations with body condition

Cited by 14 publications

References 57 publications

Trace elements fingerprint of feathers differs between breeding and non-breeding areas in an Afro-Palearctic migratory bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Trace elements fingerprint of feathers differs between breeding and non-breeding areas in an Afro-Palearctic migratory bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Metal Exposure Risk Assessment for Tree Sparrows at Different Life Stages via Diet from a Polluted Area in Northwestern China

Potential Use of Distinct Biomarkers (Trace Metals, Micronuclei and Nuclear Abnormalities) in a Heterogeneous Sample of Birds in Southern Brazil.

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