The Occurrence of Organochlorines in Marine Avian Top Predators along a Latitudinal GradientClick to copy article linkArticle link copied!
Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the role of cold condensation and fractionation on the occurrence of organochlorine contaminants (OCs) in avian marine top predators along a latitudinal gradient. We measured 24 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners and six pesticide OCs in blood of great black-backed gulls (Larus marinus) from the Norwegian Coast (58°N−70°N) and glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus) from Bjørnøya in the Norwegian Arctic (74°N). Glaucous gulls had up to 3 times higher ΣOC concentrations compared to the great black-backed gulls, and a OC pattern dominated largely by persistent and low volatile compounds such as highly chlorinated PCBs and metabolites such as oxychlordane. This was not consistent with cold condensation and fractionation theory, but probably related to diet and elevated biomagnification. Among great black-backed gulls, however, there were indications of both cold condensation and fractionation. Higher and lower chlorinated PCBs had highest absolute concentrations in the south and in the north, respectively, except for one location at an intermediate latitude, where concentrations of most OCs exceeded all other locations. In terms of proportional contribution to ΣOC (pattern), relatively volatile OCs such as HCB, oxychlordane and tri- to penta- PCB congeners were more important at northern latitudes, while hexa- to nona-PCBs made up a larger proportion of ΣOC in the south. The results thus showed that differences in global distribution of compounds with different physicochemical properties could be detected in avian top predators such as large gulls, even if biomagnification and biotransformation influence both the absolute concentrations and the patterns of OCs.
†
Norwegian Institute for Nature Research.
‡
Norwegian Institute for Water Research.
§
National Veterinary Institute and Norwegian School of Veterinary Science.
*
Corresponding author phone: + 47 77 75 04 07; fax: + 47 77 75 04 01; e-mail: [email protected].
Cited By
Smart citations by scite.ai include citation statements extracted from the full text of the citing article. The number of the statements may be higher than the number of citations provided by ACS Publications if one paper cites another multiple times or lower if scite has not yet processed some of the citing articles.
This article is cited by 16 publications.
- Alice Carravieri, Paco Bustamante, Sabrina Tartu, Alizée Meillère, Pierre Labadie, Hélène Budzinski, Laurent Peluhet, Christophe Barbraud, Henri Weimerskirch, Olivier Chastel, and Yves Cherel . Wandering Albatrosses Document Latitudinal Variations in the Transfer of Persistent Organic Pollutants and Mercury to Southern Ocean Predators. Environmental Science & Technology 2014, 48
(24)
, 14746-14755. https://doi.org/10.1021/es504601m
- Jan Ove Bustnes, Katrine Borgå, Tim Dempster, Elisabeth Lie, Torgeir Nygård, and Ingebrigt Uglem . Latitudinal Distribution of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Pelagic and Demersal Marine Fish on the Norwegian Coast. Environmental Science & Technology 2012, 46
(14)
, 7836-7843. https://doi.org/10.1021/es301191t
- Jan O. Bustnes, Geir W. Gabrielsen and Jonathan Verreault. Climate Variability and Temporal Trends of Persistent Organic Pollutants in the Arctic: A Study of Glaucous Gulls. Environmental Science & Technology 2010, 44
(8)
, 3155-3161. https://doi.org/10.1021/es9032919
- Rainer Lohmann, Rosalinda Gioia, Kevin C. Jones, Luca Nizzetto, Christian Temme, Zhiyong Xie, Detlef Schulz-Bull, Ines Hand, Eric Morgan and Liisa Jantunen . Organochlorine Pesticides and PAHs in the Surface Water and Atmosphere of the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean. Environmental Science & Technology 2009, 43
(15)
, 5633-5639. https://doi.org/10.1021/es901229k
- Jan Ove Bustnes, Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen, Børge Moe, Dorte Herzke, Rob S A van Bemmelen, Ingrid Tulp, Hans Schekkerman, Sveinn-Are Hanssen. The pollution fast-track to the Arctic: how southern wintering areas contribute to organochlorine loads in a migrant seabird breeding in the Arctic. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 2025, 44
(4)
, 1020-1028. https://doi.org/10.1093/etojnl/vgaf016
- Kate Layton‐Matthews, Kjell Einar Erikstad, Hanno Sandvik, Manuel Ballesteros, Kevin Hodges, Michel D. S. Mesquita, Tone K. Reiertsen, Nigel G. Yoccoz, Jan Ove Bustnes. Path analysis reveals combined winter climate and pollution effects on the survival of a marine top predator. Journal of Animal Ecology 2024, 93
(9)
, 1351-1364. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.14159
- Phoebe J. Lewis, Anna Lashko, Andre Chiaradia, Graeme Allinson, Jeff Shimeta, Louise Emmerson. New and legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in breeding seabirds from the East Antarctic. Environmental Pollution 2022, 309 , 119734. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119734
- Eliza H.K. Leat, Sophie Bourgeon, Sveinn A. Hanssen, Aevar Petersen, Hallvard Strøm, Tor Harry Bjørn, Geir W. Gabrielsen, Jan Ove Bustnes, Robert W. Furness, Ane Haarr, Katrine Borgå. The effect of long-range transport, trophic position and diet specialization on legacy contaminant occurrence in great skuas, Stercorarius skua, breeding across the Northeast Atlantic. Environmental Pollution 2019, 244 , 55-65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.10.005
- Jan O. Bustnes, Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen, Børge Moe, Dorte Herzke, Sveinn A. Hanssen, Kjetil Sagerup, Claus Bech, Tore Nordstad, Olivier Chastel, Sabrina Tartu, Geir Wing Gabrielsen. Temporal variation in circulating concentrations of organochlorine pollutants in a pelagic seabird breeding in the high Arctic. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 2016, 36
(2)
, 442-448. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.3560
- Jan O. Bustnes, Bård J. Bårdsen, Dorte Herzke, Trond V. Johnsen, Igor Eulaers, Manuel Ballesteros, Sveinn A. Hanssen, Adrian Covaci, Veerle L.B. Jaspers, Marcel Eens, Christian Sonne, Duncan Halley, Truls Moum, Therese Haugdal Nøst, Kjell E. Erikstad, Rolf Anker Ims. Plasma concentrations of organohalogenated pollutants in predatory bird nestlings: Associations to growth rate and dietary tracers. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 2013, 32
(11)
, 2520-2527. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.2329
- Sophie Bourgeon, Eliza H.K. Leat, Ellen Magnusdóttir, Aaron T. Fisk, Robert W. Furness, Hallvard Strøm, Sveinn Are Hanssen, Ævar Petersen, Kristin Olafsdóttir, Katrine Borgå, Geir W. Gabrielsen, Jan Ove Bustnes. Individual variation in biomarkers of health: Influence of persistent organic pollutants in Great skuas (Stercorarius skua) breeding at different geographical locations. Environmental Research 2012, 118 , 31-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2012.08.004
- Igor Eulaers, Adrian Covaci, Jelle Hofman, Torgeir Nygård, Duncan J. Halley, Rianne Pinxten, Marcel Eens, Veerle L.B. Jaspers. A comparison of non-destructive sampling strategies to assess the exposure of white-tailed eagle nestlings (Haliaeetus albicilla) to persistent organic pollutants. Science of The Total Environment 2011, 410-411 , 258-265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2011.09.070
- Eliza H.K. Leat, Sophie Bourgeon, Katrine Borgå, Hallvard Strøm, Sveinn A. Hanssen, Geir W. Gabrielsen, Ævar Petersen, Kristin Olafsdottir, Ellen Magnusdottir, Aaron T. Fisk, Sandra Ellis, Jan O. Bustnes, Robert W. Furness. Effects of environmental exposure and diet on levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in eggs of a top predator in the North Atlantic in 1980 and 2008. Environmental Pollution 2011, 159
(5)
, 1222-1228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2011.01.036
- Pernilla Carlsson, Dorte Herzke, Margareta Wedborg, Geir Wing Gabrielsen. Environmental pollutants in the Swedish marine ecosystem, with special emphasis on polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE). Chemosphere 2011, 82
(9)
, 1286-1292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.12.029
- Stacy S. Vander Pol, Paul R. Becker, Michael B. Ellisor, Amanda J. Moors, Rebecca S. Pugh, David G. Roseneau. Monitoring organic contaminants in eggs of glaucous and glaucous-winged gulls (Larus hyperboreus and Larus glaucescens) from Alaska. Environmental Pollution 2009, 157
(3)
, 755-762. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2008.11.026
- J.O. Bustnes, P. Fauchald, T. Tveraa, M. Helberg, J.U. Skaare. The potential impact of environmental variation on the concentrations and ecological effects of pollutants in a marine avian top predator. Environment International 2008, 34
(2)
, 193-201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2007.07.016
Article Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.
Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.
The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated.