Stable isotope food-web analysis and mercury biomagnification in polar bears ( Ursus maritimus )

Mercury (Hg) biomagnification occurs in many ecosystems, resulting in a greater potential for toxicological effects in higher-level trophic feeders. However, Hg transport pathways through different food-web channels are not well known, particularly in high-latitude systems affected by the atmospheric Hg deposition associated with snow and ice. Here, we report on stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios, and Hg concentrations, determined for 26, late 19th and early 20th century, polar bear ( Ursus maritimus ) hair specimens, collected from catalogued museum collections. These data elucidate relationships between the high-latitude marine food-web structure and Hg concentrations in polar bears. The carbon isotope compositions of polar bear hairs suggest that polar bears derive nutrition from coupled food-web channels, based in pelagic and sympagic primary producers, whereas the nitrogen isotope compositions indicate that polar bears occupy > fourth-level trophic positions. Our results show a positive correlation between polar bear hair Hg concentrations and δ 15 N. Interpretation of the stable isotope data in combination with Hg concentrations tentatively suggests that polar bears participating in predominantly pelagic food webs exhibit higher mercury concentrations than polar bears participating in predominantly sympagic food webs.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73930/1/j.1751-8369.2009.00114.x.pd

Estimating diets of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) using fatty acid signature analyses; validation with controlled feeding studies

Diets incorporating homogeneous binary mixtures of herring or krill oil were fed to Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) for 22 weeks, and belly flap and muscle tissues were then analyzed for fatty acid (FA) composition. Quantitative fatty acid signature analysis (QFASA) was able to estimate proportions of major dietary components within ~10% of actual values, but the accuracy of the estimates depended on the FA set and calibration coefficients (CC) used in the modelling. FAs present at low levels had little influence on estimates, despite having only dietary sources; the FA set used in the modelling must incorporate the major FAs in tissues to ensure accurate estimates of diet. CC, which reflect modifications that consumers make to dietary FAs, were similar in the two tissues but varied with diet. When CC were applied to correct for fish metabolism, QFASA tended to overestimate the dietary component that had been fed to determine the CC. Diet estimates were most accurate when CC that had been developed from feeding the krill oil-based diet were applied. This first application of QFASA to fish therefore establishes a set of FAs and CC to begin to investigate diets of salmonids.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye