Contrasting congener profiles for persistent organic pollutants and PAH monitoring in European storm petrels (Hydrobates pelagicus) breeding in Ireland: a preen oil versus feathers approach

Abstract

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are anthropogenic contaminants of environmental concern due to their persistence in the environment and capacity to accumulate in biota. Many of these contaminants have been found to have ill effects over wildlife and humans. Birds are known to be particularly affected through endocrine disruption and eggshell thinning. POPs have been banned or restricted through the Stockholm Convention (2001), making monitoring essential for tracking effects of regulation. Seabirds have been used as monitoring tools for being top predators and consuming a diverse array of prey in different trophic levels. Non-destructive sampling has become widely popular using feathers and preen oil, as opposed to carcasses and internal organs. This study aimed to set baseline levels of POP and PAH concentration in a highly pelagic and abundant seabird in Ireland and the Atlantic, the European storm petrel, Hydrobates pelagicus, and to investigate the profiles of contaminant congeners in preen oil and feathers, comparatively. Mean concentrations in preen oil followed: PCB (10.1 ng/g ww) > PAH (7.1 ng/g ww) > OCP (5.4 ng/g ww) > PBDE (3.9 ng/g ww), whilst mean concentrations in feathers followed the order: PAH (38.9 ng/g ww) > PCB (27.2 ng/g ww) > OCP (17.9 ng/g ww) > PBDE (4.5 ng/g ww). Congener profiles highly differed between preen oil and feathers, and little correlation was found between the matrices. These results demonstrate that the sampling of a single matrix alone (preen oil or feathers) might produce confounding results on contamination in seabirds and that more than one matrix is recommended to obtain a full picture of contamination by persistent organic pollutants.

Pelagic seabirds as biomonitors of persistent organic pollutants in the Southwestern Atlantic

“…Moreover, a similar congener pattern was found in both seabird species, with a predominance of BDE-47, BDE-99 and BDE-100 (Table 1). These compounds have been previously detected in feathers from others top predators including birds around the globe (Jaspers et al, 2007;Eulaers et al, 2011;Acampora et al, 2018;Monclús et al, 2018).The BDE-47 showed the highest values in CAP (< LOD -72.8 ng g −1 ) followed by BDE-99 and BDE100. These results are in line with those reported by Acampora et al (2018) (mean: 0.35 ng g −1 ; 0.46 ng g −1 ; 1.17 ng g −1 feathers, for BDE-47, BDE-99 and BDE-100, respectively).…”

“…Other reports from northern Europe have shown different distribution pattern of POPs for feathers, with a predominance of PCBs followed by OCPs and PBDEs (Jaspers et al, 2009;Acampora et al, 2018;Svendsen et al, 2018). Acampora et al (2018) reported mean levels of POPs in European storm petrels (Hydrobates pelagicus) breeding in Ireland. However, the ΣOCPs concentrations in CAP (mean: 48.06 ng g −1 feathers) were higher than those reported for the European storm petrel (mean: 17.9 ng g −1 feathers), while in BBA similar concentrations were observed (mean: 16.30 ng g −1 feathers).…”

“…There is scarce information about levels of POPs in feathers from pelagic seabirds inhabiting the Southwestern Atlantic. Regional comparisons are feasible for some POPs analyzed in this study as information is available for other seabird species, mainly from northern Europe (Sagerup et al, 2009;Acampora et al, 2018;Svendsen et al, 2018) and from South Shetland Islands and Western Antarctica (Metcheva et al, 2017). The POPs distribution pattern obtained in this study for both seabird species was similar, being OCPs > PCBs > PBDEs (BBA: mean = 16.30, 7.23, and 2.25 ng g −1 feathers, respectively; CAP: mean = 48.06, 9.60, and 9.31 ng g −1 feathers, respectively) ( Fig.…”

“…Among upper predators, pelagic seabirds (namely albatrosses and petrels) have been used as indicators of chemical pollution of aquatic ecosystems; given their trophic position in the food webs and the distant offshore feeding areas they used (Mallory et al, 2010;Seco Pon et al, 2011;Acampora et al, 2018). In birds, organic pollutants have been traditionally monitored through a range of internal tissues (Jaspers et al, 2006;Espín et al, 2010;Colabuono et al, 2012).…”

“…According to the Global Distillation and Effect and Cold Condensation (Wania and Mackay, 1996), POPs tend to accumulate in ecosystems located at high latitudes, including polar ecosystems. Most of the studies focused in birds, including seabirds, were conducted in the northern hemisphere (Jaspers et al, 2006(Jaspers et al, , 2011Acampora et al, 2018;Monclús et al, 2018;Svendsen et al, 2018). Few reports are available for other regions like southern South America (Colabuono et al, 2012;Commendatore et al, 2018;Dias et al, 2018).…”