Influence of dietary carbon on mercury bioaccumulation in streams of the Adirondack Mountains of New York and the Coastal Plain of South Carolina, USA

We studied lower food webs in streams of two mercury-sensitive regions to determine whether variations in consumer foraging strategy and resultant dietary carbon signatures accounted for observed within-site and among-site variations in consumer mercury concentration. We collected macroinvertebrates (primary consumers and predators) and selected forage fishes from three sites in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and three sites in the Coastal Plain of South Carolina, for analysis of mercury (Hg) and stable isotopes of carbon (??¹³C) and nitrogen (??¹⁵N). Among primary consumers, scrapers and filterers had higher MeHg and more depleted ??¹³C than shredders from the same site. Variation in ??¹³C accounted for up to 34 % of within-site variation in MeHg among primary consumers, beyond that explained by ??¹⁵N, an indicator of trophic position. Consumer ??¹³C accounted for 10 % of the variation in Hg among predatory macroinvertebrates and forage fishes across these six sites, after accounting for environmental aqueous methylmercury (MeHg, 5 % of variation) and base-N adjusted consumer trophic position (????¹⁵N, 22 % of variation). The ??¹³C spatial pattern within consumer taxa groups corresponded to differences in benthic habitat shading among sites. Consumers from relatively more-shaded sites had more enriched ??¹³C that was more similar to typical detrital ??¹³C, while those from the relatively more-open sites had more depleted ??¹³C. Although we could not clearly attribute these differences strictly to differences in assimilation of carbon from terrestrial or in-channel sources, greater potential for benthic primary production at more open sites might play a role. We found significant variation among consumers within and among sites in carbon source; this may be related to within-site differences in diet and foraging habitat, and to among-site differences in environmental conditions that influence primary production. These observations suggest that different foraging strategies and habitats influence MeHg bioaccumulation in streams, even at relatively small spatial scales. Such influence must be considered when selecting lower trophic level consumers as sentinels of MeHg bioaccumulation for comparison within and among sites.     

Altered gill morphology in benthic macroinvertebrates from mercury enriched streams in the Neversink Reservoir Watershed,New York

Aquatic macroinvertebrates were collected from five sites in the Neversink Reservoir Watershed in Sullivan County, New York: Aden Brook, Biscuit Brook, Main Branch, Tison and Winnisook, and examined for gill abnormalities. The Neversink Reservoir is part of the New York City water supply system and is located in the Catskill Mountains. Total mercury and methylmercury concentrations were measured by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) in composite samples of macroinvertebrates at the five sites and ranged from 13.6 to 20.9 ng/g total mercury and 2.4–9.8 ng/g methylmercury. Gill deformities in the organisms were evident from each sampling site. These were observed as puckering or dimpling of the gill lamellae and interior spotting. The greatest percentage of gill morphological abnormalities were from invertebrates at the Main Branch site where 28% of invertebrate gills exhibited abnormalities. This site had the highest mercury/methylmercury concentration in composite invertebrate samples. Macroinvertebrates from a reference location showed little evidence of gill abnormalities. Other factors may have contributed to the abnormalities such as dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, other contaminants, and/or stream profiles.     

Spatial patterns of mercury in macroinvertebrates and fishes from streams of two contrasting forested landscapes in the eastern United States

Controls on mercury bioaccumulation in lotic ecosystems are not well understood. During 2007–2009, we studied mercury and stable isotope spatial patterns of macroinvertebrates and fishes from two medium-sized (<80 km²) forested basins in contrasting settings. Samples were collected seasonally from multiple sites across the Fishing Brook basin (FB_NY), in New York’s Adirondack Mountains, and the McTier Creek basin (MC_SC), in South Carolina’s Coastal Plain. Mean methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations within macroinvertebrate feeding groups, and mean total mercury (THg) concentrations within most fish feeding groups were similar between the two regions. However, mean THg concentrations in game fish and forage fish, overall, were much lower in FB_NY (1300 and 590 ng/g dw, respectively) than in MC_SC (2300 and 780 ng/g dw, respectively), due to lower trophic positions of these groups from FB_NY (means 3.3 and 2.7, respectively) than MC_SC (means 3.7 and 3.3, respectively). Much larger spatial variation in topography and water chemistry across FB_NY contributed to greater spatial variation in biotic Hg and positive correlations with dissolved MeHg and organic carbon in streamwater. Hydrologic transport distance (HTD) was negatively correlated with biotic Hg across FB_NY, and was a better predictor than wetland density. The small range of landscape conditions across MC_SC resulted in no consistent spatial patterns, and no discernable correspondence with local-scale environmental factors. This study demonstrates the importance of local-scale environmental factors to mercury bioaccumulation in topographically heterogeneous landscapes, and provides evidence that food-chain length can be an important predictor of broad-scale differences in Hg bioaccumulation among streams.     

Determination of mercury in fish from rivers and lakes in Hungary by atomic absorption technique

In 1975, in cooperation with 8 County Hygienic Stations, total mercury content in fish from rivers and lakes in Hungary was measured. The mercury content in fish muscle-tissue from 164 fish samples averaged 0.36 mg/kg. Average levels in different fish species ranged from 0.10 to 0.57 mg/kg.The amount of mercury in fish from rivers and lakes, with the exception of the Danube, was, in general, lower than the tolerance level (0.50 mg/kg) as adopted in many countries. Mercury levels in fish from Lake Balaton did not amount to more than 0.30 mg/kg.The circulating cold vapour atomic absorption method was used to determine the mercury content in the fish samples.     

Bioaccumulation patterns and temporal trends of mercury exposure in Wisconsin common loons

A long term field study was initiated by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in 1992 to elucidate patterns of common loon (Gavia immer) mercury (Hg) exposure. Analysis of loon blood and feather samples collected from recaptured adult loons in Wisconsin 1992–2000 found evidence of a decline in overall body burdens of mercury in common loons for this region. The interval between sampling individual loons spanned 2–8 years, a sufficient length of time to observe a change in tissue Hg concentrations. Loon chick blood Hg levels declined by 4.9% annually for chicks sampled on 33 lakes during the period 1992–2000. This is the first evidence we are aware of showing a recent regional annual decrease in common loon Hg exposure. Repeated captures of wild loon chicks in Wisconsin shows that blood Hg concentrations can increase during the period of rapid feather growth (weeks 2–5), although the rate of increase is very slow. Mean egg Hg levels ranged from 0.19 to 0.87 µgHg/g wet weight (ww) in samples collected 1996–2000. Egg Hg concentration was inversely and significantly related to lake pH (p<0.0001; r ²=0.55). Adults and chicks were often captured simultaneous during the period 1992–2000. Correlations were highest between sibling blood Hg levels (r=0.88) and chick blood and adult blood (male r=0.61, female r=0.52) Hg levels, likely reflecting the influence of the Hg content of prey from the natal lake on loon blood Hg levels. The relationship between feathers and blood of adults and that of chick blood and adult feathers was weaker.     

Assessment of mercury bioaccumulation within the pelagic food web of lakes in the western Great Lakes region

While mercury is a health hazard to humans and wildlife, the biogeochemical processes responsible for its bioaccumulation in pelagic food webs are still being examined. Previous studies have indicated both “bottom-up” control of piscivorous fish Hg content through methylmercury.(MeHg) supply, as well as site-specific trophic factors. We evaluated ten studies from the western Great Lakes region to examine the similarity of MeHg trophic transfer efficiency within the pelagic food web, and assessed regional-scale spatial variability. Analyses of bioaccumulation and biomagnification factors between water, seston, zooplankton, and preyfish indicated that the largest increases in MeHg occurred at the base of the food web, and that the relative extent of trophic transfer was similar between sites. Positive correlations were observed between aqueous unfiltered MeHg, total Hg, and dissolved organic carbon, and measures of the efficiency of MeHg trophic transfer were consistent across widely disparate systems (both natural and experimentally manipulated) throughout North America. Such similarity suggests that the aqueous supply of MeHg is largely controlling bioaccumulation in pelagic food webs, while local, lake-specific variability can result from an array of trophic (biological) factors.     

Seasonal production and molecular characterization of microcystins in Oneida Lake, New York, USA

Oneida Lake, northeast of Syracuse, New York, in the United States, is a shallow eutrophic lake with a well-established toxic cyanobacterial population. Samples for DNA, toxin, and phycological analyses were collected from six stations throughout the summers of 2002 (78 samples) and 2003 (95 samples). DNA was amplified by PCR using primer sets specific to the nonribosomal microcystin synthetase complex (mcyB and mcyD). PCR analysis in 2002 indicated that the microcystin genes were present in the water column from mid-June through October, as 88% of the samples tested positive for mcyB and 79% of the samples tested positive for mcyD. In both years the onset of microcystin production was detected as early as mid-July by the protein phosphatase inhibition assay, reaching a maximum in 2002 of 2.9 microg L(-1) and in 2003 of 3.4 microg L(-1). Beginning in mid- to late August of both years the microcystin level at all six stations was in excess of the World Health Organization (WHO) advisory level of 1.0 microg L(-1). In the present study we compared microcystin occurrence and potential production at the six stations using protein phosphatase inhibition assay, high-performance liquid chromatography, and polymerase chain reaction analyses.