Mercury in fish from streams and rivers in New York State: Spatial patterns, temporal changes, and environmental drivers

Riva-Murray, Karen; Richter, Wayne; Razavi, N. Roxanna; Burns, Douglas A.; Cleckner, Lisa B.; Burton, Mark; George, Scott D.; Freehafer, Douglas A.

doi:10.1007/s10646-020-02225-0

Cited by 11 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 101 publications

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“…41,42 The methylation potential of the landscape is thought to drive stream biota Hg patterns. 34,35 In this study, we assessed how human land use affected the risks and benefits of prey subsidies, in terms of n-3 LCPUFAs and MeHg, and how land use influenced diet and MeHg risk for a representative riparian insectivore, the Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe). Eastern Phoebes are widespread insectivores throughout Eastern North America and often nest on human structures (e.g., bridges) in riparian areas, making them an ideal species in which to study the effects of human land use intensity on insect prey quality.…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A number of environmental factors associated with intensive human land use, such as higher water temperatures, light levels, and nutrient concentrations, have strong, often interacting, effects on stream periphyton fatty acid composition , as well as MeHg production . Field studies suggest that agricultural and urban land use can influence the fatty acid composition of stream primary producers and consumers. − Higher biological productivity associated with agricultural land use can increase MeHg concentrations in lotic systems, while urban areas show lower methylation potential and thus lower Hg bioaccumulation compared to forests and wetlands. , While the fatty acid composition of periphyton and stream microbes can influence the fatty acid composition of freshwater insects, especially grazers and filterers, , the cascading effects of intensive human land uses like urbanization or agriculture on the fatty acid composition of emergent freshwater insects remain relatively unresolved (but see Whorley et al). Likewise, the effects of human land use intensity on Hg in riparian consumers like birds and spiders − also remain equivocal; studies have found both increased and decreased Hg in association with either agricultural or urban land use. , The methylation potential of the landscape is thought to drive stream biota Hg patterns. , …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emergent Freshwater Insects Serve as Subsidies of Methylmercury and Beneficial Fatty Acids for Riparian Predators Across an Agricultural Gradient

Twining

Razavi

Brenna

et al. 2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Aquatic-to-terrestrial subsidies have the potential to provide riparian consumers with benefits in terms of physiologically important organic compounds like omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LCPUFAs). However, they also have a "dark side" in the form of exposure to toxicants such as mercury. Human land use intensity may also determine whether subsidies provide benefits or come at a cost for riparian predators. We sampled insects as well as Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) chicks in 2015−2016 within the southern Finger Lakes region to understand how food quality, in terms of n-3 LCPUFAs and methylmercury (MeHg), of emergent freshwater insects compared with that of terrestrial insects and how land use affected the quality of prey, predator diet composition, and MeHg exposure. Across the landscape, freshwater insects had a significantly higher percentage of the n-3 LCPUFA eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) compared to terrestrial insects and contained significantly more MeHg than terrestrial insects did. In spite of differences in MeHg concentrations between aquatic and terrestrial insects, chick MeHg concentrations were not related to diet composition. Instead, chick MeHg concentrations increased with several metrics of human land use intensity, including percent agriculture. Our findings suggest that freshwater subsidies provide predators with both risks and benefits, but that predator MeHg exposure can vary with human land use intensity.

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Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emergent Freshwater Insects Serve as Subsidies of Methylmercury and Beneficial Fatty Acids for Riparian Predators Across an Agricultural Gradient

Twining

Razavi

Brenna

et al. 2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…Whole fish were homogenized for all Lake Erie fish. To convert whole fish to muscle tissue equivalents, we applied the regression equation in Peterson et al often used to convert between tissue types . Details about quality control and quality assurance are provided in the Supporting Information.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tracking Fish Lifetime Exposure to Mercury Using Eye Lenses

Miraly

Razavi

Vogl

et al. 2022

Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett.

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Mercury (Hg) uptake in fish is affected by diet, growth, and environmental factors such as primary productivity or oxygen regimes. Traditionally, fish Hg exposure is assessed using muscle tissue or whole fish, reflecting both loss and uptake processes that result in Hg bioaccumulation over entire lifetimes. Tracking changes in Hg exposure of an individual fish chronologically throughout its lifetime can provide novel insights into the processes that affect Hg bioaccumulation. Here we use eye lenses to determine Hg uptake at an annual scale for individual fish. We assess the widely distributed benthic round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) from the Baltic Sea, Lake Erie, and the St. Lawrence River. We aged layers of the eye lens using proportional relationships between otolith length at age and eye lens radius for each individual fish. Mercury concentrations were quantified using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The eye lens Hg content revealed that Hg exposure increased with age in Lake Erie and the Baltic Sea but decreased with age in the St. Lawrence River, a trend not detected using muscle tissues. This novel methodology for measuring Hg concentration over time with eye lens chronology holds promise for quantifying how global change processes like increasing hypoxia affect the exposure of fish to Hg.

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“…Fish are well-established bioindicators of environmental Hg loads and conditions that facilitate the transport, transformations and trophic transfer of Hg. Fish data are used to understand long-term temporal trends in Hg (Millard et al 2020b;Riva-Murray et al 2020a; Richter and Skinner 2020; Swinton and Nierzwicki-Bauer 2020), evaluate human health concerns (Grieb et al 2020), link to land management and water quality (Millard et al 2020b;Razavi et al 2020), and inform fisheries management (Taylor et al 2020). Fish Hg data are also used to inform policy and management in New York State.…”

Section: What Risks To Humans Does Mercury Pollution Pose In New Yorkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…4. Streams and rivers in forested watersheds: Based on macroinvertebrates (e.g., odonate larvae) and fish, watersheds with higher forest cover and wetlands have higher MeHg concentrations that frequently exceed fish-related guidelines for human health and wildlife (Riva-Murray et al 2020aMillard et al 2020b). The belted kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) and Louisiana waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla) are good bioindicators for such systems Jackson et al 2011).…”

Section: Habitats Sensitive To Mercury Inputsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A synthesis of patterns of environmental mercury inputs, exposure and effects in New York State

et al. 2020

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Mercury (Hg) pollution is an environmental problem that adversely affects human and ecosystem health at local, regional, and global scales—including within New York State. More than two-thirds of the Hg currently released to the environment originates, either directly or indirectly, from human activities. Since the early 1800s, global atmospheric Hg concentrations have increased by three- to eight-fold over natural levels. In the U.S., atmospheric emissions and point-source releases to waterways increased following industrialization into the mid-1980s. Since then, water discharges have largely been curtailed. As a result, Hg emissions, atmospheric concentrations, and deposition over the past few decades have declined across the eastern U.S. Despite these decreases, Hg pollution persists. To inform policy efforts and to advance public understanding, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) sponsored a scientific synthesis of information on Hg in New York State. This effort includes 23 papers focused on Hg in atmospheric deposition, water, fish, and wildlife published in Ecotoxicology. New York State experiences Hg contamination largely due to atmospheric deposition. Some landscapes are inherently sensitive to Hg inputs driven by the transport of inorganic Hg to zones of methylation, the conversion of inorganic Hg to methylmercury, and the bioaccumulation and biomagnification along food webs. Mercury concentrations exceed human and ecological risk thresholds in many areas of New York State, particularly the Adirondacks, Catskills, and parts of Long Island. Mercury concentrations in some biota have declined in the Eastern Great Lakes Lowlands and the Northeastern Highlands over the last four decades, concurrent with decreases in water releases and air emissions from regional and U.S. sources. However, widespread changes have not occurred in other ecoregions of New York State. While the timing and magnitude of the response of Hg levels in biota varies, policies expected to further diminish Hg emissions should continue to decrease Hg concentrations in food webs, yielding benefits to the fish, wildlife, and people of New York State. Anticipated improvements in the Hg status of aquatic ecosystems are likely to be greatest for inland surface waters and should be roughly proportional to declines in atmospheric Hg deposition. Efforts that advance recovery from Hg pollution in recent years have yielded significant progress, but Hg remains a pollutant of concern. Indeed, due to this extensive compilation of Hg observations in biota, it appears that the extent and intensity of the contamination on the New York landscape and waterscape is greater than previously recognized. Understanding the extent of Hg contamination and recovery following decreases in atmospheric Hg deposition will require further study, underscoring the need to continue existing monitoring efforts.

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Mercury in fish from streams and rivers in New York State: Spatial patterns, temporal changes, and environmental drivers

Cited by 11 publications

References 101 publications

Emergent Freshwater Insects Serve as Subsidies of Methylmercury and Beneficial Fatty Acids for Riparian Predators Across an Agricultural Gradient

Emergent Freshwater Insects Serve as Subsidies of Methylmercury and Beneficial Fatty Acids for Riparian Predators Across an Agricultural Gradient

Tracking Fish Lifetime Exposure to Mercury Using Eye Lenses

A synthesis of patterns of environmental mercury inputs, exposure and effects in New York State

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