Organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in European roe deer Capreolus capreolus resident in a protected area in Northern Italy

In 2001, samples of liver (n=38) and perirenal fat (n=25) (only in males) were taken from European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) populating a hilly, wooded protected area in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. Samples were analyzed for organochlorine pesticides dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and its metabolites, hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocycloexane alpha-, beta- and gamma-isomers (alpha-, beta- and gamma-HCH), alpha-endosulfan, aldrin, dieldrin and endrin, and the seven PCB 'indicator' congeners IUPAC Nos. 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153 and 180, in order to investigate the current state of contamination of the area and to assess the possible toxicological risks for the monitored species. p,p'-DDE was detected in 95% of the liver and perirenal fat samples (n = 63), at concentrations ranging from 0.05). Females were not statistically tested because they were all adults. The levels of organochlorine contaminants were well below those associated with adverse reproductive effects and lethality in mammals. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.