AI Article Synopsis
- Eighteen blubber samples from fin whales near the Antarctic Peninsula were analyzed for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) during the summer feeding season of 2013.
- POP levels varied significantly, with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) having the highest concentration, while polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were the lowest.
- The lower levels of POPs in Southern Ocean fin whales compared to those in the Northern Hemisphere suggest that diet and distance from pollution sources play a significant role in the accumulation of these contaminants.
Article Abstract
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were analyzed in eighteen blubber samples biopsied from fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) during the feeding season near the Antarctic Peninsula in the summer of 2013. POP content (in ng g lipid weight) ranged from 46.4 to 708 for polychlorinated biphenyls (∑PCBs), 6.77 to 123 for hexachlorobenzene (HCB), 10.1 to 489 for dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and derivatives (∑DDTs), 5.38 to 52.8 for hexachlorocyclohexanes (∑HCH) and <0.40 to 2.54 for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (∑PBDEs). The presence of those compounds in Southern Ocean fin whales is related to long-range transport and their diet based mainly on euphausiids (krill). Their contents were much lower compared to the same species in other locations, especially in the Northern Hemisphere, presumably due to differences in trophic position and the proximity of POP sources and contamination of prey items.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.05.045 | DOI Listing |
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