Mercury bioaccumulation in Southern Appalachian birds, assessed through feather concentrations.

Mercury contamination in wildlife has rarely been studied in the Southern Appalachians despite high deposition rates in the region. From 2006 to 2008 we sampled feathers from 458 birds representing 32 species in the Southern Appalachians for total mercury and stable isotope δ (15)N. Mercury concentrations (mean ± SE) averaged 0.