HIGH ARCTIC PONDS RECEIVING BIOTRANSPORTED NUTRIENTS FROM A NEARBY SEABIRD COLONY ARE ALSO SUBJECT TO POTENTIALLY TOXIC LOADINGS OF ARSENIC, CADMIUM, AND ZINC

The role of northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) was investigated for the transport of nutrients and trace elements to a series of 10 ponds located along a gradient of seabird influence below a fulmar colony in the high Arctic (Cape Vera, Devon Island, Canada). Phosphorus, Cd, K, Zn, and As were identified as seabird-derived elements, having both a high concentration in fulmar guano and a low concentration in background pond sediments (i.e., a high biogenic enrichment factor). Fluxes of these elements were highest in the pond closest to the colony and declined exponentially with distance. Sediments in several of the ponds exceeded Canadian Sediment Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Aquatic Life set for As (5.9 mg/kg) and Cd (0.6 mg/kg), and in the pond closest to the colony, which receives the most seabird subsidies, sediments contained 343 mg/kg Zn, exceeding the threshold for probable adverse biological effects. Although nutrient subsidies from fulmars create an Arctic oasis at Cape Vera, which supports a variety of flora and fauna, the same biological transport pathway puts at risk some of these species by creating sedimentary As, Cd, and Zn concentrations at this remote site similar to those usually observed only near industrialized locations.