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Book ChapterDOI

Birds as monitors of pollutants

01 Jan 1993-pp 86-143
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that birds may reflect pollutant hazards to humans better than do most invertebrates, since they are high in food chains and have more complex physiology.
Abstract: Several authors of books on the monitoring of pollution have advocated the use of animals as monitors in terrestrial and aquatic environments (e.g. Phillips, 1980; Schubert, 1985). Such studies tend to emphasize the use of sedentary invertebrate animals as biomonitors. By comparison, birds suffer from several apparent drawbacks. They are mobile, so pollutants will be picked up from a wide, often ill-defined, area; they are long-lived, so pollutant burdens may be integrated in some complex way over time; and they have more complex physiology, and so may regulate pollutant levels better then invertebrates. Furthermore, birds tend to be more difficult to sample, and killing birds may be unacceptable for conservation or ethical reasons. However, some of these characteristics may at times be positively advantegeous. Integrating pollutant levels over greater areas or timescales or over food webs, may be useful, provided that species are chosen carefully. Less sampling may be necessary if birds can reflect pollutant levels in the whole ecosystem or over a broad area. In addition, since they are high in food chains, birds may reflect pollutant hazards to humans better than do most invertebrates. It is also significant that birds are extremely popular animals with the general public, so pollutant hazards to them are likely to receive greater attention than threats to invertebrates.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used stable isotopes of N and C from the same feathers used for mercury measurement, a technique that also permits the monitoring of trophic status over time or between regions.
Abstract: Many studies have shown that seabirds are sensitive to changes in food supply, and therefore have potential as monitors of fish stocks. For most seabird species breeding parameters suitable for biomonitoring have yet to be measured over a wide range of prey densities. However, it is clear that responses vary among species and care must be taken when interpreting seabird data as a proxy for fish abundance. For many years seabirds have also been used as monitors of pollution, especially oil pollution. Beached bird surveys provide important evidence of geographical and temporal patterns, and, for example, show consistent declines in oil release into the southern North Sea over the last 15 years. Analysis of oil on birds can now permit fingerprinting of sources, allowing prosecution of polluters. As predators high in marine food webs, seabirds also have potential as monitors of pollutants that accumulate at trophic levels. Recent work on mercury in seabirds has permitted an analysis of spatial patterns and of the rates of increase in mercury contamination of ecosystems over the last 150 years, since mercury concentrations in feathers of museum specimens can be used to assess contamination in the birds when they were alive. Surprisingly, pelagic seabirds show higher increases than most coastal ones, and increases have been greatest in seabirds feeding on mesopelagic prey. This seems to relate to patterns of methylation of mercury in low-oxygen, deeper water. Accurate measurement of long-term trends in mercury contamination depend on the assumption that seabird diet composition has not changed. This can be assessed by analysis of stable isotopes of N and C from the same feathers used for mercury measurement, a technique that also permits the monitoring of trophic status over time or between regions. While high mercury contamination of seabirds in the southern North Sea is unsurprising, we cannot yet explain certain unexpected results, such as high levels in seabirds from north Iceland compared with those from south Iceland or Scotland.

693 citations


Cites background from "Birds as monitors of pollutants"

  • ...In some instances, as with cadmium and lead, most appears to originate from direct atmospheric deposition onto feather surfaces, whereas ingested cadmium and lead become firmly bound in kidney and bone, respectively, and only enter feathers in trace amounts (Walsh, 1990; Furness, 1993; Stewart et al., 1994)....

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  • ...The use of seabirds as monitors of plastic particle pollution on the ocean surface has been suggested by a number of authors (Furness, 1985, 1993; Ryan, 1987; Spear et al., 1995; Blight and Burger, 1997) because some seabirds, especially petrels, accumulate large numbers of plastic particles in…...

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  • ...Mercury concentrations increase with age in fish and in marine mammals, but not in seabirds (Furness et al., 1990; Furness, 1993)....

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  • ...The use of seabirds as monitors of marine pollution has been advocated many times (Chapdelaine et al., 1987; Furness, 1987, 1993; Gilbertson et al., 1987; Becker, 1989, 1991; Walsh, 1990; Furness et al., 1995; Monteiro and Furness, 1995; Barrett et al., 1996; Elliott et al., 1996; Becker et al.,…...

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  • ...Thus, seabirds may be more appropriate as monitors of food chain exposure to lipid-soluble pollutants than are, for example, benthic invertebrates (Furness, 1993)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Marine birds are useful as bioindicators of environmental pollution in estuarine and marine environments because they are often at the top of the food chain, ubiquitous, and many are abundant and common, making collecting possible as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Marine birds are useful as bioindicators of environmental pollution in estuarine and marine environments because they are often at the top of the food chain, ubiquitous, and many are abundant and common, making collecting possible. Seabirds have the advantage of being large, wide-ranging, conspicuous, abundant, long-lived, easily observed, and important to people. Many species are at the top of the food chain where they bioaccumulate contaminants with age. One disadvantage is that many species are migratory, making it difficult to determine where exposure occurred. This can be eliminated by using sedentary species or young birds that obtain all their food from parents. Further, noninvasive collection of feathers can be used to assess heavy metal levels, both from current collections and from historical collections in museums dating back centuries. Marine birds can be used as bioindicators in many ways, including tissue levels of contaminants, epidemiological field studies of effects, and experimental and laboratory studies of dose and effects. Examples from our research indicate some of the ways marine birds can be useful as indicators and sentinels of contamination, particularly by using young birds and feathers.

291 citations


Cites background from "Birds as monitors of pollutants"

  • ...A few groups of animals dominate the contaminant literature, including crustaceans, fish, and birds, particularly raptors, waterfowl, and seabirds (Burger, 1993; Furness, 1993; Hoffman et al., 1996; Beyer et al., 1996)....

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  • ...Seabirds are useful as bioindicators of coastal and marine pollution (Hays and Risebrough, 1972; Gochfeld, 1980; Walsh, 1990; Peakall, 1992; Furness, 1993; Furness and Camphuysen, 1997)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Experimental evidence that levels of mercury in seabirds show a dose-response relationship, so that increased contamination of the environment causes a corresponding increase in the level in birds gives a good basis for the use of seabird as monitors of mercury.
Abstract: The oceans play a major role in global cycling of mercury and widespread contamination of marine ecosystems has been demonstrated in recent years. Monitoring mercury in the marine environment is a priority and biomonitoring has featured prominently in this respect. Seabirds, as top predators, present high mercury levels due to food chain amplification and thus will reflect slight variations in environmental mercury and its hazards to humans better than do most invertebrates and cold blood vertebrates. There is experimental evidence that levels of mercury in seabirds show a dose-response relationship, so that increased contamination of the environment causes a corresponding increase in the level in birds. This coupled with current knowledge on the dynamics of mercury in birds gives a good basis for the use of seabird as monitors of mercury. Internal tissues, blood, eggs, feathers and chicks have been used as monitoring units. Feathers are the most attractive amongst them. They are both chemically and physically stable, accumulate higher mercury levels than other tissues and their sampling is non-destructive. However, it is essential to sample a consistent feather area from all birds to minimise the effects of moult and body feathers are the most adequate. Feathers from birds in museum collections offer a great potential for the study of synoptic geographical and historical of changes in mercury levels on a global scale with large sample sizes. For example, studies with time series of feather samples from seabirds provide evidence of a 3-fold increase of mercury contamination in the marine ecosystem of North-eastern Atlantic over the last 100 years and little increase in mercury contamination in the Southern hemisphere during the same period.

227 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It was found that pigment spots specifically demarcated thinner areas of shell, with darker spots marking yet thinner shell than paler spots, so accounting for the eggshell's characteristic spot patterns.
Abstract: Birds are unique in laying eggs with pigmented shells, but for most species (e.g. most passerines, which lay white eggs speckled with reddish spots of protoporphyrin) the pigments’ function is unknown. We studied a bird population at a geologically variable site, and considered a hitherto untested hypothesis: that protoporphyrin pigments might compensate for reduced eggshell-thickness (caused partly by calcium deficiency), which is known to reduce eggshell-strength and increase eggshell-permeability. We found that pigment spots specifically demarcated thinner areas of shell, with darker spots marking yet thinner shell than paler spots. Variation in pigmentation was thus associated with variation in shell thickness both within and between clutches, so accounting for the eggshell's characteristic spot patterns. Geological variability at this site has resulted in a great range of calcium availability and, as predicted by the hypothesis, variation in calcium availability was found to affect between-clutch variation in both eggshell-mass (+) and pigmentation characteristics (−). We suggest a physiological mechanism and some important implications of these findings.

214 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Tom Dauwe1, Lieven Bervoets1, Ronny Blust1, Rianne Pinxten1, Marcel Eens1 
TL;DR: It is concluded that excrement of great and blue tit nestlings can be used as a biomonitor for heavy metals (lead, cadmium, arsenic, and copper), whereas feathers appear only to be suitable for lead pollution.
Abstract: Although birds have been frequently used as indicators of heavy metal pollution, few studies have examined pollutant levels in nestling passerines. In this paper we determined the levels of two essential (zinc and copper) and three nonessential heavy metals (lead, cadmium, and arsenic) in the excrement and feathers of great (Parus major) and blue tit (Parus caeruleus) nestlings at a polluted site (near a metallurgic factory) and a reference site (4 km farther east). The excrement of both great and blue tit nestlings contained significantly higher concentrations of arsenic, cadmium, copper, and lead at the polluted site. Zinc concentrations did not differ significantly between sites for both species. The feathers of great and blue tit nestlings accumulated significantly higher concentrations of lead at the polluted site than at the reference site. Zinc levels in the feathers of great tit nestlings were significantly higher at the reference site than at the polluted site. For all other elements considered, concentrations did not differ significantly between the two sites. There were no interspecific differences in metal levels between great and blue tits in both excrement and feathers. There was a significant positive correlation between the lead concentration in the excrement and feathers for both great and blue tits. We therefore conclude that excrement of great and blue tit nestlings can be used as a biomonitor for heavy metals (lead, cadmium, arsenic, and copper), whereas feathers appear only to be suitable as a biomonitor for lead pollution.

196 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Relationship between the sexes dispersion breeding density winter density problems concerning nest-sites breeding strategies breeding rates behaviour in the breeding season fidelity to breeding areas movements mortality human persecution DDT and other organo-chlorines other pollutants and pesticides conservation management breeding from captive birds scientific names of raptors.
Abstract: Relationship between the sexes dispersion breeding density winter density problems concerning nest-sites breeding strategies breeding rates behaviour in the breeding season fidelity to breeding areas movements mortality human persecution DDT and other organo-chlorines other pollutants and pesticides conservation management breeding from captive birds scientific names of raptors.

2,115 citations

Book
01 Jan 1979
TL;DR: The relationship between the sexes dispersion breeding density winter density problems concerning nest-sites breeding strategies breeding rates behaviour in the breeding season fidelity to breeding areas movements mortality human persecution DDT and other organo-chlorines other pollutants and pesticides conservation management breeding from captive birds scientific names of raptors.
Abstract: Relationship between the sexes dispersion breeding density winter density problems concerning nest-sites breeding strategies breeding rates behaviour in the breeding season fidelity to breeding areas movements mortality human persecution DDT and other organo-chlorines other pollutants and pesticides conservation management breeding from captive birds scientific names of raptors.

1,956 citations

Book
01 Jan 1971
TL;DR: In this paper, a review on cadmium in the environment has been performed under a contract between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Environmental Hygiene of the Karolinska Institute, Sweden.
Abstract: The focus of this report is upon information essential to the understanding of the toxic action of cadmium and the relationship between dose (exposure) and effects on human beings and animals. The therapy of cadmium poisoning has not been discussed.This review on cadmium in the environment has been performed under a contract between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Environmental Hygiene of the Karolinska Institute, Sweden. The report is intended to serve as a background paper for a future Air Quality Criteria document on cadmium. Therefore, particular attention has been given to information relevant for the evaluation of risks due to long-term exposure to low concentrations of cadmium. Acute effects from short-term exposure to high concentrations are dealt with briefly. In vitro studies without bearing on the main problem have not been dealt with.The report is not limited to effects from exposure via inhalation. Newly accessible information, showing that large populations may be exposed considerably via the oral route, can elucidate chronic effects of cadmium in general. Man and animals can be victims of secondary exposure through vehicles such as food and water which have been contaminated by cadmium in air.

1,641 citations