An assessment of contaminant concentrations in toothed whale species of the NW Iberian Peninsula: Part II. Trace element concentrations

• Published in: Science of The Total Environment
• Main Authors: Méndez-Fernandez, Paula, Webster, Lynda, Chouvelon, Tiphaine, Bustamante, Paco, Ferreira, Marisa, González, Angel, López, Alfredo, Moffat, Colin, Pierce, Graham, Read, Fiona, Russell, Marie, Santos, Maria Begoña, Spitz, Jérôme, Vingada, José, Caurant, Florence
• Other Authors: LIttoral ENvironnement et Sociétés - UMR 7266 (LIENSs), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-La Rochelle Université (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Marine Scotland Science, Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology - CBMA (Braga, Portugal), Universidade do Minho = University of Minho Braga, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (CSIC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas Madrid (CSIC), CEMMA, Coordinadora para o Estudio dos Mamiferos Marinos, CESAM and Departamento de Biologia da Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen, Instituto Espanol de Oceanografia (IEO), IEO, Marine Mammal Research Unit, University of British Columbia (UBC), CESAM and Department of Biology, University of Minho Braga
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2014
• Subjects: trace elements; bioaccumulation; toothed whales; Northwest Iberian Peninsula; [SDV.TOX.ECO]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Toxicology/Ecotoxicology; Harbour porpoise; toothed whale
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-01079869; https://hal.science/hal-01079869/document; https://hal.science/hal-01079869/file/Mendez-Fernandez%20et%20al%202014%20STOTEN%20Part%20II.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.03.001

International audience Concentrations of Ag, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, V and Zn were investigated in liver and kidney of the five most common toothed whales off the Northwest Iberian Peninsula (NWIP), specifically common dolphin, long-finned pilot whale, harbour porpoise, striped dolphin and bottlenose dolphin. Differences were observed in the bioaccumulation of the above elements between the five species. The differences are probably related to biological factors such as age and sex and/or to ecological factors specific to each species such as feeding habits or bioavailability of the various elements. However, no significant relationship was observed between element accumulation and sex. Pilot whale and striped dolphin showed the highest concentrations of renal Cd and the highest concentrations of hepatic Hg and Se, while bottlenose dolphin showed the highest concentrations of Hg in kidneys. An analysis of inter-elemental relationships showed strong positive correlations between Hg and Se in the five species, however most individuals have Hg:Se molar ratio less than 1:1 indicating an excess of Se compare to Hg. This result, probably reflect the high proportion of young animals in the sample available for this study and/or that these animals had a good health status. We also observed a positive correlation in striped dolphins between Cd and Cu and between Cd and Zn in kidneys. In addition, comparing with other studies world-wide, the element concentrations (Hg and Cd) found in Iberian toothed whales indicates that these populations are not specially threatened by Hg and Cd exposure in the area.