ISSN: 2041-6792

Clinical Investigation

Mercury Biomonitoring

 There is an abundance of field data on levels of mercury in a variety of organisms and there are a number of studies that demonstrate the adverse effects of mercury on laboratory animals, but few studies examine the relationship between the two. Thus it's often difficult to work out the ecological relevance of mercury concentrations found in nature, or to predict the ecosystem consequences of current levels. In this paper we review the levels in tissues that are associated with adverse effects in birds from laboratory studies and compare these with levels found in wild bird populations in the New York Bight to provide a basis for interpreting values in avian populations. We use feathers from fledgling birds which might are ate up locally obtained food to eliminate the matter of where toxic burdens were acquired by more mobile adult birds. Laboratory studies indicate that in some species mercury levels of 1.5 ppm in eggs and/or 5 to 40 ppm within the feathers of birds are related to adverse effects, including impaired reproduction.  The levels in eggs of some wild birds within the ny Bight are within the range known to lower hatchability, embryo and chick survival, and chick weight, all variables that reduce reproductive success. Species with dangerously elevated mercury levels in feathers include great egret (Ardea[=Egretta]alba), snowy egret (Egretta thula), and black skimmers.  

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