Trophic relationships and mercury biomagnification in Brazilian tropical coastal food webs | Health & Environmental Research Online (HERO)

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Citation
Tags

HERO ID

3110750

Reference Type

Journal Article

Title

Trophic relationships and mercury biomagnification in Brazilian tropical coastal food webs

Author(s)

Bisi, TL; Lepoint, G; Azevedo, A; Dorneles, PR; Flache, L; Das, K; Malm, O; Lailson-Brito, J

Year

2012

Is Peer Reviewed?

Yes

Journal

Ecological Indicators
ISSN: 1470-160X
EISSN: 1872-7034

Publisher

Elsevier Ltd

Volume

Page Numbers

291-302

Language

English

DOI

10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.11.015

Web of Science Id

WOS:000303284500034

URL

https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/trophic-relationships-mercury-biomagnification/docview/1686731399/se-2?accountid=171501
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Abstract

The present study investigated trophic relationships and mercury flow through food webs of three tropical coastal ecosystems: Guanabara, Sepetiba and Ilha Grande bays. The investigation was carried out through carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes (delta C-13, delta N-15) and total mercury (THg) determination in muscle from 35 species, including crustacean, cephalopod, fish and dolphin species. Detritivorous species showed the lowest average delta N-15 values in all bays. These species were C-13 enriched in Sepetiba and Ilha Grande bays, suggesting the presence of C-13 enriched macroalgae in their diet. The highest mean delta N-15 values were found in fish and benthic invertebrate feeders, as well as in species presenting demerso-pelagic feeding habit. The carbon and nitrogen isotopic findings showed different trophic relationship in food webs from Sepetiba, Guanabara and Ilha Grande bays. Guanabara Bay showed to be depleted in delta N-15 compared to both Sepetiba and Ilha Grande bays. The latter finding suggests substantial contribution of atmospheric nitrogen fixation by cyanobacteria. A positive linear relationship was found between log THg concentrations and delta N-15 values for Guanabara and Ilha Grande bays, but not for Sepetiba Bay. Our findings showed trophic magnification factors (TMF) above 1, demonstrating that THg is being biomagnified up the food chains in Rio de Janeiro bays. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords

Tropical ecosystems; Food web; Stable isotope; Heavy metal; Bioaccumulation; Guiana dolphin