First health and pollution study on harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) living in the German Elbe estuary

MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN

卷:60

Article

Kakuschke, Antje¹  Valentine-Thon, Elizabeth²  Griesel, Simone¹  Gandrass, Juergen¹  Perez Luzardo, Octavio³  Dominguez Boada, Luis³  Zumbado Pena, Manuel³  Almeida Gonzalez, Maira³  Grebe, Mechthild¹  Proefrock, Daniel¹  Erbsloeh, Hans-Burkhard¹  Kramer, Katharina¹  Fonfara, Sonja⁴  Prange, Andreas¹ 

[1] GKSS Forschungszentrum Geesthacht GmbH, Inst Coastal Res, D-21502 Geesthacht, Germany

[2] Lab Ctr Bremen, Dept Immunol, D-28205 Bremen, Germany

[3] Univ Las Palmas Gran Canaria, Toxicol Unit, Dept Clin Sci, Inst Canario Invest Canc, Las Palmas Gran Canaria 35080, Spain

[4] Univ Liverpool, Small Anim Teaching Hosp, Neston CH64 7TE, England

关键词: Harbor seal;    Phoca vitulina;    Elbe estuary;    North Sea;    Health;    Pollution;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.marpolbul.2010.07.011

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

The Elbe is one of the major rivers releasing pollutants into the coastal areas of the German North Sea. Its estuary represents the habitat of a small population of harbor seals (Phoca vitulina). Only little is known about the health status and contamination levels of these seals. Therefore, a first-ever seal catch was organized next to the islands of Neuwerk and Scharhorn in the region of the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park. The investigations included a broad set of health parameters and the analysis of metals and organic pollutants in blood samples. Compared to animals of other Wadden Sea areas, the seals showed higher gamma-globulin levels, suggesting higher concentrations of pathogens in this near-urban area, elevated concentrations for several metals in particular for V, Sn, Pb, and Sr, and comparable ranges for chlorinated organic contaminants, except for elevated levels of hexachlorobenzene, which indicates characteristic inputs from the Elbe. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

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