A 50-year retrospective of persistent organic pollutants in the fat and eggs of penguins of the Southern Ocean.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been spreading to Antarctica for over half a century. Penguins are effective indicators of pelagic concentrations of POPs. We synthesized the literature on penguins to assess temporal trends of pelagic contamination in Antarctica, using fat and eggs to monitor changes from 1964 to 2011.

Mercury in the ecosystem of Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica: Occurrence and trophic distribution.

Mercury (Hg) can reach the environment through natural and human-related sources, threatening ecosystems all over the planet due to its well known deleterious effects. Therefore, Antarctic trophic webs, despite being relatively isolated, are not exempt of its influence. To evaluate Hg concentrations in an Antarctic ecosystem, different tissues from 2 species of invertebrates, 2 of fish, 8 of birds, 4 of pinnipeds and at least 5 of vegetation were investigated (n=176).

Yeasts from macroalgae and lichens that inhabit the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica.

Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are largely dominated by lichens, while shallow coastal environments are mainly covered by macroalgae. The aim of this study was to isolate and to evaluate the diversity of yeasts in different species of macroalgae and lichens collected in South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. A total of 405 yeasts were recovered (205 from macroalgae and 200 from lichens).

Persistent organic pollutants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in penguins of the genus Pygoscelis in Admiralty Bay - An Antarctic specially managed area.

Persistent organic pollutants were assessed in fat samples of the Gentoo (Pygoscelis papua), Chinstrap (Pygoscelis antarcticus) and Adélie (Pygoscelis adeliae) penguins collected during the austral summers of 2005/06 and 2006/07 in Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica. The predominant organic pollutants were PCB (114 to 1115), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (60.1 to 238.

Persistent organic pollutants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in mosses after fire at the Brazilian Antarctic Station.

A fire at the Brazilian Antarctic Station on February 25th, 2012 led to the burning of material that produced organic pollutants. To evaluate the impact in the surrounding area, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were analyzed in moss samples collected in the vicinities of the station before and after the incident and compared to findings from previous studies in the same region. PCBs were on the same magnitude as that reported in previous studies, which could be associated to the global dispersion of these compounds and may not be related to the local fire.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in fat samples from White-chinned Petrels (Procellaria aequinoctialis) and Spectacled Petrels (P. conspicillata) off southern Brazil.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been gaining much visibility in environmental chemical studies due to their similarity to PCBs and growing reports of harmful effects. The fact that these contaminants have not yet undergone bans or restrictions on the global level underscores the need for data on their occurrence. In the present study, fat samples from 26 White-chinned Petrels (Procellaria aequinoctialis) and 3 Spectacled Petrels (P.

Persistent organic pollutants in marine biota of São Pedro and São Paulo Archipelago, Brazil.

Remote islands, such as the São Pedro and São Paulo Archipelago (SPSPA), Brazil, are pristine areas. However, these locations are not exempt from the arrival of anthropogenic agents, such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The present study aimed to determine the occurrence and distribution of POPs in the marine biota of the SPSPA.

Persistent organic pollutants and stable isotopes in pinnipeds from King George Island, Antarctica.

In the present work, fat, skin, liver and muscle samples from Leptonychotes weddellii (Weddell seal, n=2 individuals), Lobodon carcinophagus (crabeater seal, n=2), Arctocephalus gazella (Antarctic fur seal, n=3) and Mirounga leonina (southern elephant seal, n=1) were collected from King George Island, Antarctica, and analysed for POPs (PCBs, organochlorine pesticides and PBDEs) and stable isotopes (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N in all tissues but fat). PBDEs could be found in only one sample (L. weddellii fat).

Organic pollutants and their correlation with stable isotopes in vegetation from King George Island, Antarctica.

Vegetation samples from King George Island, Antarctica (62°05'S, 058°23'W) were collected in the austral summer of 2004-2005. Lichens (Usnea aurantiaco-atra and Usnea antarctica), mosses (Sanionia uncinata, Syntrichia princeps and Brachytecium sp.), and one angiosperm (Colobanthus quitensis) species were analyzed for persistent organic pollutants as well as δ(13)C and δ(15)N stable isotopes.

Occurrence of organochlorine compounds in Euphausia superba and unhatched eggs of Pygoscelis genus penguins from Admiralty Bay (King George Island, Antarctica) and estimation of biomagnification factors.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides are compounds that do not occur naturally in the environment and are not easily degraded by chemical or microbiological action. In the present work, those compounds were analysed in unhatched penguin eggs and whole krill collected in Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica in the austral summers of 2004-2005 and 2005-2006. The compounds found in higher levels (in a wet weight basis) were, in most of the egg samples, the PCBs (2.