Mercury levels in herring gulls and fish: 42 years of spatio-temporal trends in the Great Lakes

Blukacz‐Richards, E. Agnes; Visha, Ariola; Graham, Matthew; McGoldrick, Daryl J.; Solla, Shane R. de; Moore, David; Arhonditsis, George B.

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.12.148

Cited by 33 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Moreover, in our analyses bioaccumulation index was based on the full range of fish size to mercury concentration covariation. Like several other long-term studies [8,10,46,47], our results also showed an increase in mercury bioaccumulation for the most recent time periods, particularly in north and mid latitudinal zones (Figure 3a,b). This increase in fish mercury levels in recent periods is speculated to be climate change induced [10,[48][49][50].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Spatiotemporal Variations in Mercury Bioaccumulation at Fine and Broad Scales for Two Freshwater Sport Fishes

Thomas

Melles

Bhavsar

2018

Water

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Bioaccumulation of mercury in sport fish is a complex process that varies in space and time. Both large-scale climatic as well as fine-scale environmental factors are drivers of these space-time variations. In this study, we avail a long-running monitoring program from Ontario, Canada to better understand spatiotemporal variations in fish mercury bioaccumulation at two distinct scales. Focusing on two common large-bodied sport fishes (Walleye and Northern Pike), the data were analyzed at fine-and broad-scales, where fine-scale implies variations in bioaccumulation at waterbody-and year-level and broad-scale captures variations across 3 latitudinal zones (~5 • each) and eight time periods (~5-year each). A series of linear mixed-effects models (LMEMs) were employed to capture the spatial, temporal and spatiotemporal variations in mercury bioaccumulation. Fine-scale models were overall better fit than broad-scale models suggesting environmental factors operating at the waterbody-level and annual climatic conditions matter most. Moreover, for both scales, the space time interaction explained most of the variation. The random slopes from the best-fitting broad-scale model were used to define a bioaccumulation index that captures trends within a climate change context. The broad-scale trends suggests of multiple and potentially conflicting climate-driven mechanisms. Interestingly, broad-scale temporal trends showed contrasting bioaccumulation patterns-increasing in Northern Pike and decreasing in Walleye, thus suggesting species-specific ecological differences also matter. Overall, by taking a scale-specific approach, the study highlights the overwhelming influence of fine-scale variations and their interactions on mercury bioaccumulation; while at broad-scale the mercury bioaccumulation trends are summarized within a climate change context.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Spatiotemporal Variations in Mercury Bioaccumulation at Fine and Broad Scales for Two Freshwater Sport Fishes

Thomas

Melles

Bhavsar

2018

Water

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“…However, intervening ecological, geochemical or climatic processes may be acting to drive biological time trends along divergent paths. Blukacz-Richards et al (2017) evaluated the temporal trends since the 1970s of Hg concentrations in eggs of a piscivorous bird (herring gull Larus argentatus), in muscles of two piscivorous fish (lake trout and walleye Sander vitreus) and of a planktivorous fish (rainbow smelt Osmerus mordax) in the Great Lakes. The results presented a mixed temporal pattern ( Fig.…”

Section: Case Study 1: Fish and Birds In Lakes And Coastal Waters Of mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mercury concentrations (wet weight; natural logarithm-transformed) in muscle of rainbow smelt (planktivorous) and lake trout (piscivorous), and in eggs of herring gull (piscivorous) from the Great Lakes region, North America from the 1970s to 2010s(Blukacz-Richards et al, 2017). The solid and dashed lines correspond to the median and the 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of the predicted Hg concentrations.…”

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confidence: 99%

How closely do mercury trends in fish and other aquatic wildlife track those in the atmosphere? – Implications for evaluating the effectiveness of the Minamata Convention

Wang

Outridge

Meng

et al. 2019

Science of The Total Environment

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“…Indeed, although the toxic effects of Hg are presumably widespread across the components of aquatic ecosystems, investigations of Hg contamination have been mainly focused on freshwater fish (e.g., Depew et al, 2013;Åkerblom et al, 2014;Scheuhammer et al, 2014;Eagles-Smith et al, 2016), probably because this biota represents both a major source of protein for many human populations (Futsaeter and Wilson, 2013;Dong et al, 2015;Lepak et al, 2016;Fliedner et al, 2016). Aquatic birds have also attracted considerable scientific attention in this respect (Ackerman et al, 2016;Jackson et al, 2016;Blukacz-Richards et al, 2017;Sullivan and Kopec, 2018;Żarski et al, 2017; see also Whitney and Cristol, 2017 for a review). Yet, other aquatic vertebrates than fishes, and especially mesoand apex-predators, may well suffer from Hg contamination (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of mercury contamination in viperine snakes, Natrix maura, in Western Europe

Lemaire

Bustamante

Olivier

et al. 2018

Science of The Total Environment

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The effects of Hg contamination are presumably widespread across the components of aquatic ecosystems, but investigations have been mainly focused on freshwater fish, because this biota represents a major source of Hg for human populations. Yet, the possible bioaccumulation of Hg on other freshwater meso- and apex-predators (e.g., amphibians, reptiles) has been largely overlooked, especially in Western Europe. In this study, the determinants of Hg concentrations were assessed for the viperine snake (Natrix maura) across 6 populations (>130 individuals sampled in 2016 and 2017) in France and Spain. Specifically, body size, sex, and diet were compared with Hg concentrations measured in ventral scales. Overall, N. maura accumulated Hg in their scales. Sex did not seem to influence Hg concentrations in this species. Significant differences in Hg concentrations were observed between study sites, and these differences were likely to be mediated by site-specific diet. Frog-eating individuals were characterized not only by lower mean values of Hg (0.194±0.018μg·g versus 0.386±0.032μg·g for piscivorous individuals), but also by weaker slopes of the body size-Hg relationship as compared to fish-eating snakes, suggesting strong differences in accumulation rates due to food resources. Importantly, the highest slope of the body size-Hg relationship and the highest values of Hg were found in individuals foraging on trout raised by a fish farm, suggesting that fish farming may contribute to Hg contamination in inland freshwater systems. Finally, our results are compared with data on Hg concentrations in other species of aquatic snakes, in order to provide a comparative point for future studies.

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Mercury levels in herring gulls and fish: 42 years of spatio-temporal trends in the Great Lakes

Cited by 33 publications

References 46 publications

Spatiotemporal Variations in Mercury Bioaccumulation at Fine and Broad Scales for Two Freshwater Sport Fishes

Spatiotemporal Variations in Mercury Bioaccumulation at Fine and Broad Scales for Two Freshwater Sport Fishes

How closely do mercury trends in fish and other aquatic wildlife track those in the atmosphere? – Implications for evaluating the effectiveness of the Minamata Convention

Determinants of mercury contamination in viperine snakes, Natrix maura, in Western Europe

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