1
|
Keilen EK, Borgå K, Thorstensen HS, Hylland K, Helberg M, Warner N, Bæk K, Reiertsen TK, Ruus A. Differences in Trophic Level, Contaminant Load, and DNA Damage in an Urban and a Remote Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) Breeding Colony in Coastal Norway. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY 2022; 41:2466-2478. [PMID: 35860956 PMCID: PMC9826413 DOI: 10.1002/etc.5441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are opportunistic feeders, resulting in contaminant exposure depending on area and habitat. We compared contaminant concentrations and dietary markers between two herring gull breeding colonies with different distances to extensive human activity and presumed contaminant exposure from the local marine diet. Furthermore, we investigated the integrity of DNA in white blood cells and sensitivity to oxidative stress. We analyzed blood from 15 herring gulls from each colony-the urban Oslofjord near the Norwegian capital Oslo in the temperate region and the remote Hornøya island in northern Norway, on the Barents Sea coast. Based on d13 C and d34 S, the dietary sources of urban gulls differed, with some individuals having a marine and others a more terrestrial dietary signal. All remote gulls had a marine dietary signal and higher relative trophic level than the urban marine feeding gulls. Concentrations (mean ± standard deviation [SD]) of most persistent organic pollutants, such as polychlorinated biphenyl ethers (PCBs) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), were higher in urban marine (PCB153 17 ± 17 ng/g wet weight, PFOS 25 ± 21 ng/g wet wt) than urban terrestrial feeders (PCB153 3.7 ± 2.4 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 6.7 ± 10 ng/g wet wt). Despite feeding at a higher trophic level (d15 N), the remote gulls (PCB153 17 ± 1221 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 19 ± 1421 ng/g wet wt) were similar to the urban marine feeders. Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes were detected in only a few gulls, except for decamethylcyclopentasiloxane in the urban colony, which was found in 12 of 13 gulls. Only hexachlorobenzene was present in higher concentrations in the remote (2.6 ± 0.42 ng/g wet wt) compared with the urban colony (0.34 ± 0.33 ng/g wet wt). Baseline and induced DNA damage (doublestreak breaks) was higher in urban than in remote gulls for both terrestrial and marine feeders. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:2466-2478. © 2022 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Katrine Borgå
- Department of BiosciencesUniversity of OsloOsloNorway
| | | | - Ketil Hylland
- Department of BiosciencesUniversity of OsloOsloNorway
| | | | | | - Kine Bæk
- The Norwegian Institute for Water ResearchOsloNorway
| | | | - Anders Ruus
- Department of BiosciencesUniversity of OsloOsloNorway
- The Norwegian Institute for Water ResearchOsloNorway
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Schell CJ, Dyson K, Fuentes TL, Des Roches S, Harris NC, Miller DS, Woelfle-Erskine CA, Lambert MR. The ecological and evolutionary consequences of systemic racism in urban environments. Science 2020; 369:science.aay4497. [DOI: 10.1126/science.aay4497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 146] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Urban areas are dynamic ecological systems defined by interdependent biological, physical, and social components. The emergent structure and heterogeneity of urban landscapes drives biotic outcomes in these areas, and such spatial patterns are often attributed to the unequal stratification of wealth and power in human societies. Despite these patterns, few studies have effectively considered structural inequalities as drivers of ecological and evolutionary outcomes and have instead focused on indicator variables such as neighborhood wealth. In this analysis, we explicitly integrate ecology, evolution, and social processes to emphasize the relationships that bind social inequities—specifically racism—and biological change in urbanized landscapes. We draw on existing research to link racist practices, including residential segregation, to the heterogeneous patterns of flora and fauna observed by urban ecologists. In the future, urban ecology and evolution researchers must consider how systems of racial oppression affect the environmental factors that drive biological change in cities. Conceptual integration of the social and ecological sciences has amassed considerable scholarship in urban ecology over the past few decades, providing a solid foundation for incorporating environmental justice scholarship into urban ecological and evolutionary research. Such an undertaking is necessary to deconstruct urbanization’s biophysical patterns and processes, inform equitable and anti-racist initiatives promoting justice in urban conservation, and strengthen community resilience to global environmental change.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J. Schell
- School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, University of Washington, Tacoma, WA 98402, USA
| | - Karen Dyson
- College of Built Environments, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Dendrolytics, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Tracy L. Fuentes
- College of Built Environments, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Simone Des Roches
- College of Built Environments, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Nyeema C. Harris
- Applied Wildlife Ecology Lab, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Danica Sterud Miller
- School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, University of Washington, Tacoma, WA 98402, USA
| | - Cleo A. Woelfle-Erskine
- School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, College of the Environment, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Max R. Lambert
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Rojas-Hucks S, Gutleb AC, González CM, Contal S, Mehennaoui K, Jacobs A, Witters HE, Pulgar J. Xenopus laevis as a Bioindicator of Endocrine Disruptors in the Region of Central Chile. ARCHIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION AND TOXICOLOGY 2019; 77:390-408. [PMID: 31422435 DOI: 10.1007/s00244-019-00661-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2019] [Accepted: 08/06/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
One of the direct causes of biodiversity loss is environmental pollution resulting from the use of chemicals. Different kinds of chemicals, such as persistent organic pollutants and some heavy metals, can be endocrine disruptors, which act at low doses over a long period of time and have a negative effect on the reproductive and thyroid system in vertebrates worldwide. Research on the effects of endocrine disruptors and the use of bioindicators in neotropical ecosystems where pressure on biodiversity is high is scarce. In Chile, although endocrine disruptors have been detected at different concentrations in the environments of some ecosystems, few studies have been performed on their biological effects in the field. In this work, Xenopus laevis (African clawed frog), an introduced species, is used as a bioindicator for the presence of endocrine disruptors in aquatic systems with different degrees of contamination in a Mediterranean zone in central Chile. For the first time for Chile, alterations are described that can be linked to exposure to endocrine disruptors, such as vitellogenin induction, decreased testosterone in male frogs, and histological changes in gonads. Dioxin-like and oestrogenic activity was detected in sediments at locations where it seem to be related to alterations found in the frogs. In addition, an analysis of land use/cover use revealed that urban soil was the best model to explain the variations in frog health indicators. This study points to the usefulness of an invasive species as a bioindicator for the presence of endocrine-disruptive chemicals.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sylvia Rojas-Hucks
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Arno C Gutleb
- Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), 5 avenue des Hauts-Fourneaux, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Carlos M González
- Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - Servane Contal
- Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), 5 avenue des Hauts-Fourneaux, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Kahina Mehennaoui
- Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), 5 avenue des Hauts-Fourneaux, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - An Jacobs
- Department Environmental Health and Risk, Team Applied Bio and Molecular Sciences (ABS), Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), Boeretang 200, 2400, Mol, Belgium
| | - Hilda E Witters
- Department Environmental Health and Risk, Team Applied Bio and Molecular Sciences (ABS), Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), Boeretang 200, 2400, Mol, Belgium
| | - José Pulgar
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Flahr LM, Michel NL, Zahara ARD, Jones PD, Morrissey CA. Developmental Exposure to Aroclor 1254 Alters Migratory Behavior in Juvenile European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2015; 49:6274-6283. [PMID: 25893686 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.5b01185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Birds exposed to endocrine disrupting chemicals during development could be susceptible to neurological and other physiological changes affecting migratory behaviors. We investigated the effects of ecologically relevant levels of Aroclor 1254, a polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) mixture, on moult, fattening, migratory activity, and orientation in juvenile European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). Birds were orally administered 0 (control), 0.35 (low), 0.70 (intermediate), or 1.05 (high) μg Aroclor 1254/g-body weight by gavage from 1 through 18 days posthatch and later exposed in captivity to a photoperiod shift simulating an autumn migration. Migratory activity and orientation were examined using Emlen funnel trials. Across treatments, we found significant increases in mass, fat, and moulting and decreasing plasma thyroid hormones over time. We observed a significant increase in activity as photoperiod was shifted from 13L:11D (light:dark) to 12L:12D, demonstrating that migratory condition was induced in captivity. At 12L:12D, control birds oriented to 155.95° (South-Southeast), while high-dosed birds did not. High-dosed birds showed a delayed orientation to 197.48° (South-Southwest) under 10L:14D, concomitant with apparent delays in moult. These findings demonstrate how subtle contaminant-induced alterations during development could lead to longer-scale effects, including changes in migratory activity and orientation, which could potentially result in deleterious effects on fitness and survival.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Leanne M Flahr
- †Toxicology Graduate Program, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B3
- ‡Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B3
| | - Nicole L Michel
- §School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5C8
| | - Alexander R D Zahara
- ∥Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5E2
| | - Paul D Jones
- ‡Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B3
- §School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5C8
| | - Christy A Morrissey
- ‡Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B3
- ∥Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5E2
| |
Collapse
|