Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
Volume 189, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109834
Keywords
Bottlenose dolphins; Australia; Tissue distribution; Temporal trends; Age; POPs; MeO-PBDEs
Funding
- Australian Research Council [DE160100468]
- Australian Research Council [DE160100468] Funding Source: Australian Research Council
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Information about pollution and its potential impact in Australian marine wildlife is scarce. To fill this knowledge gap, our study investigated concentrations of legacy pollutants as well as naturally produced methoxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (MeO-PBDEs) in blubber, liver, kidney and muscle of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) from two large inverse estuaries in South Australia from 1989 to 1995 and 2009-2014. Our results show that concentrations of most pollutant classes are relatively low compared to the literature but at the higher end of the ranges reported for marine mammals in Australia. Results for some individuals exceed toxicity thresholds indicative of immunotoxicity in marine mammals. It is important to note that concentrations of some compound classes, particularly PBDEs and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), increased over a time interval of 20 years thereby placing more individuals at risk in recent years. Some of the highest concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were measured in juveniles, which may jeopardize their development and the success of future generations. These results indicate that legacy pollutants may play a role in the long-term health of T. aduncus and should be included in biomonitoring efforts.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available