Journal
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Volume 68, Issue -, Pages 65-72Publisher
SCIENCE PRESS
DOI: 10.1016/j.jes.2017.10.017
Keywords
Canada; Fulmarus glacialis; Northern fulmar; Thick-billed murre; Uria lomvia
Categories
Funding
- Environment and Climate Change Canada
- Northern Contaminants Program of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada [1617-HQ-000221]
- Acadia University
- Polar Continental Shelf Program, Natural Resources Canada
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Mercury (Hg) remains a key contaminant of concern in Arctic biota, and monitoring of Hg concentrations in seabird tissues will be an effective approach to track the effects of implementing the Minamata Convention. We examined trends in total Hg (THg) in liver and egg tissues of two Arctic seabirds, thick-billed murres (Uria lomvia) and northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis), between 1976 and 2013 to assess whether both tissues showed similar patterns of Hg change. Hepatic THg was consistently higher than egg THg, and both species had similar egg THg concentrations, but fulmars had higher hepatic THg than murres. Murre THg concentrations showed more relative variation through time than fulmars. We suggest that egg THg better reflects exposure of birds to THg in local, Arctic prey, whereas liver THg may incorporate longer term, year-round THg exposure. Additional analysis of THg distribution in Arctic seabirds post-laying would help inform interpretation of long-term trends. (C) 2017 The Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V.
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