Concentration and origin of lead (Pb) in liver and bone of Eurasian buzzards (Buteo buteo) in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Eurasian buzzards which have liver concentrations likely to be associated with lethal and sublethal effects is probably obtained when they prey upon or scavenge gamebirds and mammals shot using Pb shotgun pellets.

Associations between abundances of free‐roaming gamebirds and common buzzards Buteo buteo are not driven by consumption of gamebirds in the buzzard breeding season

“…It is possible that buzzards increase their consumption of gamebirds over this period, and gamekeeper records of raptor predation on red‐legged and gray partridges Perdix perdix peak between February and May (Watson et al, 2007). It is also plausible that areas with more pheasant releases provide more carrion during the winter and early spring period, as a consequence of unrecovered shooting casualties (Taggart et al, 2020; Watson et al, 2007) and vehicle collisions (Madden & Perkins, 2017). For example, in their study of gray partridge survival, Watson et al (2007) estimate 10% of the birds that died following shooting were not recovered.…”

The Impact of Pb from Ammunition on the Vegetation of a Bird Shooting Range

“…Previous studies have revealed the accumulation of metals and metalloids in different animal tissues of numerous animal species [53][54][55][56]. In particular, some studies have already shown the adverse effect at different levels that Pb pellets derived from hunting actions have on the populations of several species of waterbirds ( [32,[57][58][59]; Anas platyrhynchos [60,61]), birds of prey (Milvus milvus, Aquila adalberti [62]; Haliaeetus albicilla [63]; Aquila chrysaetos [64]; Buteo buteo [65]), other bird species ( [66,67] Columbia livia [68,69]; Alectoris chukar [70][71][72]; Alectoris rufa [49,[73][74][75]; Perdix perdix [76]; Phasianus colchicus [77,78], and also mammals (Lynx pardinus, Herpestes ichneumon, Meles meles, Genetta genetta [79]; Sus Scrofa [80]; Capra pyrenaica [81]). 4).…”

Lead concentrations in antlers of European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) from an agricultural area in Northern Germany over a 119-year period—a historical biomonitoring study

“…Adult roe bucks in Germany cast their old antlers between October and December, followed by antler regrowth during winter. The velvet is shed from the antlers in March/April, and the rutting period extends from mid-July to mid-August (von Raesfeld et al 1978;Stubbe 1997). Antlers were assigned to the years in which the respective bucks had been taken.…”

“…Secondly, the species is highly adaptable and therefore inhabits a wide range of habitats (Andersen et al 1998). Thirdly, it has a relatively small home range, enabling a monitoring with rather high spatial resolution (von Raesfeld et al 1978;Danilkin 1995;Stubbe 1997).…”

“…Currently, industry is the main lead emission source, followed by road traffic, the latter now primarily due to tire wear and brake abrasion (McKenzie et al 2009 ; Grigoratos and Martini 2015 ; Adamiec et al 2016 ; Adamiec 2017 ; Bourliva et al 2018 ). Recent studies on lead exposure of biota and humans demonstrate that lead contamination of the environment remains an issue of high concern (Müller-Graf et al 2017 ; Stokke et al 2017 ; Gerofke et al 2018 , 2019 ; Martin et al 2019 ; Pain et al 2019a ; Helander et al 2019 ; Taggart et al 2020 ; Lermen et al 2021 ).…”