Chronology of mercury enrichment factors in reef corals from western Venezuela

Ramos, Ruth; Cipriani, Roberto; Guzmán, Héctor M.; García, Elia

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2008.09.023

Cited by 15 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The ecological effect of resuspended contaminated sediment in marine environments is complex (Roberts, 2012); however, the liberation of sediment-bound contaminates is an important problem in mine waste management where resuspension and entrainment of sediment particles by wind-induced motions (e.g., waves and currents) occur (see review by Eggleton and Thomas, 2004 In shallow coastal waters, like CH, resuspension events can occur frequently due to wind-and wave-induced bottom stresses. In contrast to some studies linking rain to coral metal uptake (e.g., Ramos et al, 2009), CH trace metal variability was not related to cumulative annual precipitation, presumably given the lack of runoff on Bermuda. In contrast, the statistically significant relationship between southeasterly wind speed (number of observations) and the first EOF at CH (Fig.…”

Section: Castle Harbourcontrasting

confidence: 94%

“…Many studies have shown uptake of metals by scleractinian corals (Howard and Brown, 1984;Fallon et al, 2002;David, 2003;Reichelt-Brushett and Harrison, 2005;Ramos et al, 2009). Abundances of trace metals in corals have been explored to monitor environmental change and to reconstruct temporal and spatial patterns of contaminant input to the coral reef environment (e.g., Scott, 1990;Guzman and Jimenez, 1992;Bastidas and Garcia, 1999;Fallon et al, 2002;David, 2003;Runnalls and Coleman, 2003;Al-Rousan et al, 2007;Edinger et al, 2008;Prouty et al, 2008;Chen et al, 2010;Wang et al, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental assessment of metal exposure to corals living in Castle Harbour, Bermuda

et al. 2013

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Environmental contamination in Castle Harbour, Bermuda, has been linked to the dissolution and leaching of contaminants from the adjacent marine landfill. This study expands the evidence for environmental impact of leachate from the landfill by quantitatively demonstrating elevated metal uptake over the last 30 years in corals growing in Castle Harbour. Coral Pb/Ca, Zn/Ca and Mn/Ca ratios and total Hg concentrations are elevated relative to an adjacent control site in John Smith's Bay. The temporal variability in the Castle Harbour coral records suggests that while the landfill has increased in size over the last 35 years, the dominant input of metals is through periodic leaching of contaminants from the municipal landfill and surrounding sediment. Elevated contaminants in the surrounding sediment suggest that resuspension is an important transport medium for transferring heavy metals to corals. Increased winds, particularly during the 1990s, were accompanied by higher coral metal composition at Castle Harbour. Coupled with wind-induced resuspension, interannual changes in sea level within the Harbour can lead to increased bioavailability of sediment-bound metals and subsequent coral metal assimilation. At John Smith's Bay, large scale convective mixing may be driving interannual metal variability in the coral record rather than impacts from land-based activities. Results from this study provide important insights into the coupling of natural variability and anthropogenic input of contaminants to the nearshore environment.Published by Elsevier B.V.

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Section: Castle Harbourcontrasting

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental assessment of metal exposure to corals living in Castle Harbour, Bermuda

et al. 2013

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“…Fe and Mn are regarded as markers of terrestrial material inputs (Ramos et al, 2004;Ramos et al, 2009). For example, Lewis et al (2007) described Mn in a 175 yr-long Porites coral from Magnetic Island, Australia, as a tracer of sediment input attributed to animal grazing and related soil erosion, from the Burdekin River catchment into the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heavy metal pollution recorded in Porites corals from Daya Bay, northern South China Sea

Chen¹,

Yu²,

Li³

et al. 2010

Marine Environmental Research

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We examined metal-to-calcium ratios (Fe/Ca, Mn/Ca and Zn/Ca) in the growth bands of two Porites corals from Daya Bay, South China Sea, in order to trace long-term trends in local ambient pollution levels. Although Fe and Mn did not show any obvious increasing trends over 32 years in the period 1976-2007, peak values of Fe/Ca and Mn/Ca occurred in the mid-late 1980s, temporally-coeval with the local construction of a nuclear power station. Furthermore, both corals showed rapid increases in Zn concentrations over the past 14 years (1994-2007), most likely due to increases in domestic and industrial sewage discharge. The Daya Bay corals had higher concentrations of metals than other reported corals from both pristine and seriously polluted locations, suggesting that acute (Fe and Mn) and chronic (Zn) heavy metal contamination has occurred locally over the past approximately 32 years.

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“…In the Pearl River estuary (Shi et al, 2010) Hg concentrations decrease on moving seawards along the estuary. In Venezuela, Ramos et al (2009) linked increases of Hg in coral skeletons to rainfall and runoff from industrial sites, while in the Caribbean, Guzman and Garcia (2002) found elevated Hg concentrations in various components of the reef environment, and related these to burning and mining activities with some evidence of long distance movement.…”

Section: Hg Concentrations Have Been Identified In Sediments In Variomentioning

confidence: 99%

Mercury (Hg) speciation in coral reef systems of remote Oceania: Implications for the artisanal fisheries of Tutuila, Samoa Islands

Morrison

Peshut

West

et al. 2015

Marine Pollution Bulletin

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We investigated Hg in muscle tissue of fish species from three trophic levels on fringing reefs of Tutuila (14°S, 171°W), plus water, sediment and turf alga. Accumulation of total Hg in the herbivore Acanthurus lineatus (Acanthuridae, lined surgeonfish, (n =40)) was negligible at 1.05 (±0.04) ngg -1 wet-weight, (~65% occurring as methyl Hg). The mid-level carnivore Parupeneus spp. (Mullidae, goatfishes (n =10)) had total Hg 29.8 (±4.5) ngg -1 wet-weight (~99% as methyl Hg). Neither A. lineatus or Parupeneus spp. showed a propensity to accumulate Hg based on body size. Both groups were assigned a status of "un-restricted" for monthly consumption limits for non-carcinogenic health endpoints for methyl Hg. The top-level carnivore Sphyraena qenie (Sphyraenidae, blackfin barracuda, n =3) had muscle tissue residues of 105, 650 and 741ngg -1 wetweight (100% methyl Hg, with increasing concentration with body mass, suggesting that S. qenie >15kg would have a recommendation of "no consumption".

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Chronology of mercury enrichment factors in reef corals from western Venezuela

Cited by 15 publications

References 37 publications

Environmental assessment of metal exposure to corals living in Castle Harbour, Bermuda

Environmental assessment of metal exposure to corals living in Castle Harbour, Bermuda

Heavy metal pollution recorded in Porites corals from Daya Bay, northern South China Sea

Mercury (Hg) speciation in coral reef systems of remote Oceania: Implications for the artisanal fisheries of Tutuila, Samoa Islands

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