Arsenic trophodynamics along the food chains/webs of different ecosystems: a review

Drivers of biomagnification of Hg, As and Se in aquatic food webs: A review

“…Globally, some of the literature has indicated that biomagnification in aquatic systems is largely influenced by environmental, ecological and biological factors (Barwick and Maher, 2003;Campbell et al, 2008;Huang, 2016;Wyn et al, 2009;Zhang et al, 2012). Some studies reporting biomagnification of Hg, As and Se in aquatic systems (i.e.…”

“…However, little is known about trophodynamics in freshwater systems in particular (Caumette et al, 2012;Huang, 2016;Kumari et al, 2017;Tu et al, 2011;Yang et al, 2020). Naturally As concentrations in aquatic environments (rivers and lakes) range from less than 0.5 μg L -1 to more than 5000 μg L -1 .…”

“…Regarding the potential for biomagnification in food webs, a variety of drivers have been reported, and also many of the results on bioaccumulation and biomagnification are inconsistent especially when it comes to demonstrating increased concentrations from algae to zooplankton, and from zooplankton to forage fish to predatory fish (Azizur Rahman et al, 2012;Kato et al, 2020;Maher et al, 2011;Majer et al, 2014). It has been reported that in freshwater systems the concentration level is related to the rate of biodilution as opposed to marine, which is more associated with the enrichment of the organic form (arsenobetaine) and the degradation of foods with high arseno-sugar contents (Caumette et al, 2012;Huang, 2016;Kirby et al, 2002). In marine nets in Daya Bay, China, low concentrations of As were recorded in pelagic organisms as opposed to benthic organisms (Du et al, 2021).…”

Trace elements’ reference levels in blood of breeding black-browed albatrosses Thalassarche melanophris from the Falkland Islands

“…Moreover, elements such as cadmium, cobalt, copper, manganese, strontium, and vanadium are accumulated by organisms of different trophic levels, but do not biomagnify (even in top predators, such as seabirds) because biodilution processes increase significantly with trophic position (Campbell et al 2005;Nfon et al 2009;Revenga et al 2012;Konovalenko et al 2016;Liu et al 2016Liu et al , 2017Liu et al , 2019Signa et al 2019). Conversely, the extent of arsenic and selenium biomagnification through the food web is a complex issue and is still a matter of scientific debate (Campbell et al 2005;Mathews and Fisher 2008;Nfon et al 2009;Stewart et al 2010;Huang 2016;Furtado et al 2019). Selenium is transferred in food chains, and biomagnification does occur (Rainbow 2018).…”

“…Stewart et al (2010) proposed a "trophic transfer function" to describe increased selenium concentrations in marine food webs, because transfer from prey to predator is dependent on concentration in a non-linear manner. Arsenic, usually in its inorganic forms, decreases with increasing trophic levels, but organic arsenic, especially arsenobetaine, increases (see review Huang 2016). The behavior of mercury is well-known, and it biomagnifies through the food chains, thus, top predators generally show higher mercury levels than primary producers (Santos et al 2006).…”