Feather mercury concentrations in Southern Ocean seabirds: Variation by species, site and time

Becker, Peter; Goutner, Vassilis; Ryan, Peter G.; González‐Solís, Jacob

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2016.05.061

Cited by 54 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…Comparing our results with other investigations regarding seabirds (e.g. Burger and Gochfeld 2000 a, b;Becker 2003, Burger et al 2009Lucia et al 2010;Becker et al 2016), some general considerations can be made on the transfer of metals from food to birds in marine food chains, revealed by these analyses on feathers:…”

Section: 1supporting

confidence: 80%

“…However, the majority of investigations have only focused on mercury levels in feathers (e.g. Álvarez-Varas et al, 2018;Becker et al, 2016;Brasso et al, 2015;Carravieri et al, 2013;Frias et al, 2012).…”

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several investigations from different parts of the world have reported Hg levels in feathers from different penguin species such as the Gentoo penguin, Pygoscelis papua, the Chinstrap penguin, Pygoscelis antartica, the Adelie penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae (Metcheva et al 2006;Jerez et al 2011;Brasso et al 2015;Becker et al 2016); the Little penguin, Eudyptula minor (Dunlop et al 2013;Brasso et al 2015;Finger et al 2015); the Rockhopper penguin, Eudyptes chrysocome (Carravieri et al 2013;Brasso et al 2015); the African penguin, Spheniscus demersus, the Emperor penguin, Aptenodytes forsteri (Brasso et al 2015); the King penguin, Aptenodytes patagonicus and the Macaroni penguin, Eudyptes chrysolophus (Carravieri et al 2013).…”

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…6. Investigations regarding sex-related variations in seabirds' feathers has led to contrasting results, but gender specialization in feeding habitats, rather than physiological characteristics of seabirds, seem to explain different Hg levels in male and females (Kojadinovic et al 2007;Becker et al, 2016;Carravieri et al, 2014a).…”

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Humboldt penguins' feathers as bioindicators of metal exposure

Squadrone

Brizio

Favaro

et al. 2019

Science of The Total Environment

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Avian feathers have the potential to accumulate trace elements originating from contaminated food and polluted environments. In fact, in feathers, metals bind to keratin, a sulphur-containing protein for which several metals have a strong affinity. Here, the concentrations of 18 essential and nonessential elements were investigated in a Humboldt penguin (Spheniscus humboldti) colony housed at the Acquario di Cattolica (Italy). This species is listed as vulnerable in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. According to the literature, there is usually a link between metal levels in the diet of birds and levels detected in their feathers. Thus, metals were also determined in the penguins' food (capelin, Mallotus villosus). We hypothesize that the controlled conditions in which birds are kept in captivity, and the homogeneous diet that they follow could allow a better understanding of metal bioaccumulation (such as mercury) or bio-dilution (such as arsenic) in the marine food chain, indicated by penguins' feathers. Moreover, comparisons with our previous investigations performed on an ex-situ African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) colony suggest that penguins living indoors have lower body burden of metals than those living outdoors. Indeed, environmental contaminants usually found in areas subjected to anthropogenic impact, where zoos and aquaria are often located, are not accumulated to levels of concern.

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Section: 1supporting

confidence: 80%

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Humboldt penguins' feathers as bioindicators of metal exposure

Squadrone

Brizio

Favaro

et al. 2019

Science of The Total Environment

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“…The study of contaminants, such as methylmercury, has been linked to stable isotope measurements of carbon and nitrogen in order to relate the fate of metal contaminants to food sources and food web structure (Chen et al, 2009, 2014, 2016, Coelho et al, 2013, Fox et al, 2014, Becker et al, 2016). In these cases, contaminant samples as well as their paired stable isotope samples must be minimally handled and processed to avoid contamination.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of sample preparation on estuarine macrofauna stable isotope signatures in the context of contaminant bioaccumulation studies

Curtis

Buggé

Buckman

et al. 2017

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

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The ratios of stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen provide important information on food sources of aquatic organisms and trophic structure of aquatic food webs. For many studies, trophic position and food source are linked to bioaccumulation and trophic transfer of contaminants from prey to predators. In these cases, it is useful to use measurements on whole organisms to make direct comparisons of contaminant bioaccumulation and food web attributes. There is a great deal of variation in methods used for stable isotope analysis, particularly in the selection of tissue type and sample preparation prior to stable isotope analysis. While there have been aquatic studies that examined methodological differences, few have focused on estuarine organisms. In this study, the effects of depuration and tissue dissection on the stable isotope enrichment of common estuarine invertebrates and fish were examined. Homogenized tissues of non-depurated whole organisms were compared to dissected muscle tissue or depurated whole organisms. A 24 h depuration did not change the mean δ15N and δ13C values for most species examined. Additionally, as expected, significant differences in carbon and nitrogen signatures were found when muscle tissues were compared to whole organisms. However, differences were small enough that food source as inferred by δ13C or trophic level as inferred from δ15N would not be inaccurately represented (differences of <1.9‰ for δ13C and <1.2‰ for δ15N). The results of this study suggest that for these common estuarine fish and macroinvertebrates, stable isotopes ratios of samples can be analyzed without depuration in the same way as samples for contaminant analysis, but differences in tissue types must be taken into account when combining data from different sources.

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Mercury Concentrations Vary Within and Among Individual Bird Feathers: A Critical Evaluation and Guidelines for Feather Use in Mercury Monitoring Programs

Peterson

Ackerman

Toney

et al. 2019

Environ Toxicol Chem

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Feathers are widely used to represent mercury contamination in birds. Yet, few recommendations exist that provide guidance for using bird feathers in mercury monitoring programs. We conducted a literature review and 5 experiments to show that mercury concentrations vary substantially within (vane >100% higher than calamus) and among (>1000%) individual feathers from the same bird. We developed a research tool and guidelines for using bird feathers for mercury studies based on 3 components: 1) variability of feather mercury concentrations within an individual bird (coefficient of variation), 2) desired accuracy of the measured mercury concentration, and 3) feather and bird mass. Our results suggest a general rule that if the goal is to limit analytical and processing costs by using whole feathers in only one sample boat, then to achieve an accuracy within 10% of a bird's overall average feather mercury concentration a bird with a coefficient of variation ≤10% must be <190 g (size of a large shorebird). To achieve an accuracy within 20%, a bird with a coefficient of variation ≤10% must be <920 g (a large duck). When more than one sample boat is needed to fit the required number of feathers to achieve the desired accuracy, the results suggest homogenizing feathers and analyzing an aliquot of ≥20 mg for mercury. The present study suggests increasing the number of feathers typically used per bird to assess mercury concentrations. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:1164–1187. Published 2019 Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of SETAC. This article is a US government work and, as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America.

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Feather mercury concentrations in Southern Ocean seabirds: Variation by species, site and time

Cited by 54 publications

References 87 publications

Humboldt penguins' feathers as bioindicators of metal exposure

Humboldt penguins' feathers as bioindicators of metal exposure

Influence of sample preparation on estuarine macrofauna stable isotope signatures in the context of contaminant bioaccumulation studies

Mercury Concentrations Vary Within and Among Individual Bird Feathers: A Critical Evaluation and Guidelines for Feather Use in Mercury Monitoring Programs

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