Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida)
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in high trophic level species typically reflect the contributions of myriad sources, such that source apportionment is rarely possible. The release of PCBs by a military radar station into Saglek Bay, Labrador contaminated the local marine food web. For instance, whi...
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Online Access: | https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/355 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 |
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ftunivwindsor:oai:scholar.uwindsor.ca:glierpub-1357 2023-06-11T04:07:58+02:00 Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) Brown, Tanya M. Iverson, Sara J. Fisk, Aaron T. Macdonald, Robie W. Helbing, Caren C. Reimer, Ken J. 2015-05-05T07:00:00Z https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/355 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 unknown Scholarship at UWindsor https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/355 doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research Publications Diet Fatty acids Labrador Polychlorinated biphenyls Pusa hispida text 2015 ftunivwindsor https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 2023-05-06T19:10:50Z Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in high trophic level species typically reflect the contributions of myriad sources, such that source apportionment is rarely possible. The release of PCBs by a military radar station into Saglek Bay, Labrador contaminated the local marine food web. For instance, while heavier (higher chlorinated) PCB profiles in some ringed seals (Pusa hispida) were previously attributed to this local source, differences in feeding preferences among seals could not be ruled out as a contributing factor. Herein, similar fatty acid profiles between those seals with 'local' PCB profiles and those with 'long-range' or background profiles indicate little support for the possibility that differential feeding ecologies underlay the divergent PCB profiles. Ringed seals appeared to feed predominantly on zooplankton (Mysis oculata and Themisto libellula), followed by the dusky snailfish (Liparis gibbus), arctic cod (Boreogadus saida), and shorthorn sculpin (Myoxocephalus scorpius). Principal components analysis (PCA) and PCB homolog profiles illustrated the extent of contamination of the Saglek food web, which had very different (and much heavier) PCB profiles than those food web members contaminated by 'long-range' sources. Locally contaminated prey had PCB levels that were higher (2- to 544-fold) than prey contaminated by 'long-range' sources and exceeded wildlife consumption guidelines for PCBs. The application of multivariate analyses to two distinct datasets, including PCB congeners (n=50) and fatty acids (n=65), afforded the opportunity to clearly distinguish the contribution of locally-released PCBs to a ringed seal food web from those delivered via long-ranged transport. Results from the present study strongly suggest that habitat use rather than differences in prey selection is the primary mechanism explaining the divergent PCB patterns in Labrador ringed seals. Text Arctic cod Arctic Boreogadus saida Pusa hispida ringed seal Themisto Themisto libellula Zooplankton University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor Arctic Saglek Bay ENVELOPE(-62.583,-62.583,58.333,58.333) Science of The Total Environment 515-516 188 197 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor |
op_collection_id |
ftunivwindsor |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Diet Fatty acids Labrador Polychlorinated biphenyls Pusa hispida |
spellingShingle |
Diet Fatty acids Labrador Polychlorinated biphenyls Pusa hispida Brown, Tanya M. Iverson, Sara J. Fisk, Aaron T. Macdonald, Robie W. Helbing, Caren C. Reimer, Ken J. Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
topic_facet |
Diet Fatty acids Labrador Polychlorinated biphenyls Pusa hispida |
description |
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in high trophic level species typically reflect the contributions of myriad sources, such that source apportionment is rarely possible. The release of PCBs by a military radar station into Saglek Bay, Labrador contaminated the local marine food web. For instance, while heavier (higher chlorinated) PCB profiles in some ringed seals (Pusa hispida) were previously attributed to this local source, differences in feeding preferences among seals could not be ruled out as a contributing factor. Herein, similar fatty acid profiles between those seals with 'local' PCB profiles and those with 'long-range' or background profiles indicate little support for the possibility that differential feeding ecologies underlay the divergent PCB profiles. Ringed seals appeared to feed predominantly on zooplankton (Mysis oculata and Themisto libellula), followed by the dusky snailfish (Liparis gibbus), arctic cod (Boreogadus saida), and shorthorn sculpin (Myoxocephalus scorpius). Principal components analysis (PCA) and PCB homolog profiles illustrated the extent of contamination of the Saglek food web, which had very different (and much heavier) PCB profiles than those food web members contaminated by 'long-range' sources. Locally contaminated prey had PCB levels that were higher (2- to 544-fold) than prey contaminated by 'long-range' sources and exceeded wildlife consumption guidelines for PCBs. The application of multivariate analyses to two distinct datasets, including PCB congeners (n=50) and fatty acids (n=65), afforded the opportunity to clearly distinguish the contribution of locally-released PCBs to a ringed seal food web from those delivered via long-ranged transport. Results from the present study strongly suggest that habitat use rather than differences in prey selection is the primary mechanism explaining the divergent PCB patterns in Labrador ringed seals. |
format |
Text |
author |
Brown, Tanya M. Iverson, Sara J. Fisk, Aaron T. Macdonald, Robie W. Helbing, Caren C. Reimer, Ken J. |
author_facet |
Brown, Tanya M. Iverson, Sara J. Fisk, Aaron T. Macdonald, Robie W. Helbing, Caren C. Reimer, Ken J. |
author_sort |
Brown, Tanya M. |
title |
Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
title_short |
Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
title_full |
Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
title_fullStr |
Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
title_full_unstemmed |
Local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated PCB concentrations in Labrador ringed seals (Pusa hispida) |
title_sort |
local contamination, and not feeding preferences, explains elevated pcb concentrations in labrador ringed seals (pusa hispida) |
publisher |
Scholarship at UWindsor |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/355 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-62.583,-62.583,58.333,58.333) |
geographic |
Arctic Saglek Bay |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Saglek Bay |
genre |
Arctic cod Arctic Boreogadus saida Pusa hispida ringed seal Themisto Themisto libellula Zooplankton |
genre_facet |
Arctic cod Arctic Boreogadus saida Pusa hispida ringed seal Themisto Themisto libellula Zooplankton |
op_source |
Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research Publications |
op_relation |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/355 doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.02.019 |
container_title |
Science of The Total Environment |
container_volume |
515-516 |
container_start_page |
188 |
op_container_end_page |
197 |
_version_ |
1768381076694106112 |