Mercury in freshwater, estuarine, and marine fishes from Southern Brazil and its ecological implication

In this study, we measured the mercury concentration in 27 different fish species with high commercial value. Samples were taken from a region characterized by the diversity of aquatic environments. Mercury concentration in marine fish species varied from 30.4 to 216 ng g−1, while in estuarine speci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
Main Authors: Kütter, Vinicius Tavares, Mirlean, Nicolai, Baisch, Paulo Roberto Martins, Kütter, Mateus Tavares, Silva-Filho, Emmanoel Vieira da
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2009
Subjects:
Mercury
Ecological impact
Aquatic environment
Patos lagoon
Southern Brazil
South Pole
South pole
Online Access:http://repositorio.furg.br/handle/1/2008
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-008-0610-1
Description
Summary:In this study, we measured the mercury concentration in 27 different fish species with high commercial value. Samples were taken from a region characterized by the diversity of aquatic environments. Mercury concentration in marine fish species varied from 30.4 to 216 ng g−1, while in estuarine species, it varied from 12.4 to 60.3 ng g−1. Compared to mercury concentration in marine species, none of the specimens from estuarine environment has reached a mercury concentration of 100 ng g−1.However, mercury concentrations in species from the freshwater Patos lagoon are remarkably higher (15.3 to 462 ng g−1) than those from the estuarine or marine region. Even though mercury concentrations in these fish species did not exceed the maximum level (500 ng g−1) allowed by WHO for human consumption, they represent the main food source for sea birds and mammals coming from South Pole during their migration period.

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