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Interspecific Variations in the Internal Mercury Isotope Dynamics of Antarctic Penguins: Implications for Biomonitoring

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Download Hi-Res ImageDownload to MS-PowerPointCite This:Environ. Sci. Technol. 2024, 58, 14, 6349-6358
    Occurrence, Fate, and Transport of Aquatic and Terrestrial Contaminants

    Interspecific Variations in the Internal Mercury Isotope Dynamics of Antarctic Penguins: Implications for Biomonitoring
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    • Saebom Jung
      Saebom Jung
      Division of Environmental Science and Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang 37673, South Korea
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      Orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5932-323X
    • Lucien Besnard
      Lucien Besnard
      Division of Environmental Science and Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang 37673, South Korea
      More by Lucien Besnard
    • Mi-Ling Li
      Mi-Ling Li
      School of Marine Science and Policy, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
      More by Mi-Ling Li
      Orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-8574-2625
    • John R Reinfelder
      John R Reinfelder
      Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, United States
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    • Eunhee Kim
      Eunhee Kim
      Citizens’ Institute for Environmental Studies (CIES), Seoul 03039, South Korea
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    • Sae Yun Kwon*
      Sae Yun Kwon
      Division of Environmental Science and Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang 37673, South Korea
      Institute for Convergence Research and Education in Advanced Technology, Yonsei University, 85 Songdogwahak-ro, Incheon 21983, South Korea
      *Email: [email protected]. Phone: +82-54-279-2290.
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      Orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-8665-0327
    • Jeong-Hoon Kim*
      Jeong-Hoon Kim
      Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI), 26 Songdomirae-ro, Incheon 21990, South Korea
      *Email: [email protected]. Phone: +82-32-760-5513.
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    Environmental Science & Technology

    Cite this: Environ. Sci. Technol. 2024, 58, 14, 6349–6358
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    https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c09452
    Published March 26, 2024
    Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society
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    Abstract

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    Mercury (Hg) biomonitoring requires a precise understanding of the internal processes contributing to disparities between the Hg sources in the environment and the Hg measured in the biota. In this study, we investigated the use of Hg stable isotopes to trace Hg accumulation in Adélie and emperor penguin chicks from four breeding colonies in Antarctica. Interspecific variation of Δ199Hg in penguin chicks reflects the distinct foraging habitats and Hg exposures in adults. Chicks at breeding sites where adult penguins predominantly consumed mesopelagic prey showed relatively lower Δ199Hg values than chicks that were primarily fed epipelagic krill. Substantial δ202Hg variations in chick tissues were observed in both species (Adélie: −0.11 to 1.13‰, emperor: −0.27 to 1.15‰), whereas only emperor penguins exhibited the lowest δ202Hg in the liver and the highest in the feathers. Our results indicate that tissue-specific δ202Hg variations and their positive correlations with % MeHg resulted from MeHg demethylation in the liver and kidneys of emperor penguin chicks, whereas Adélie penguin chicks showed different internal responses depending on their exposure to dietary MeHg. This study highlights the importance of considering intra- and interspecific variations in adult foraging ecology and MeHg demethylation when selecting penguin chicks for Hg biomonitoring.

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    Supporting Information

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    The Supporting Information is available free of charge at https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.3c09452.

    • Sampling details and complete Hg isotope data sets in Tables S1–S5, and additional figures mentioned in the text in Figures S1–S5 (PDF)

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    This article is cited by 2 publications.

    1. Alain Manceau, Paco Bustamante, Etienne Richy, Yves Cherel, Sarah E. Janssen, Pieter Glatzel, Brett A. Poulin. Mercury speciation and stable isotopes in emperor penguins: First evidence for biochemical demethylation of methylmercury to mercury-dithiolate and mercury-tetraselenolate complexes. Journal of Hazardous Materials 2025, 485 , 136499. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.136499
    2. Maria Alessia Vecchio, Lana Abou-Zeid, Laura Suàrez-Criado, Mathias Vandermeiren, Marco Grotti, Frank Vanhaecke. Enhanced insight into the biogeochemical cycle of Hg in the Antarctic marine environment of Terra Nova Bay via isotopic analysis. Chemosphere 2025, 373 , 144157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2025.144157
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    Environmental Science & Technology

    Cite this: Environ. Sci. Technol. 2024, 58, 14, 6349–6358
    Click to copy citationCitation copied!
    https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c09452
    Published March 26, 2024
    Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society
    Request reuse permissions

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