Publications

Burrowing mayflies (Hexagenia bilineata) were analyzed to assess longitudinal patterns in their cadmium and mercury content along the upper Mississippi River. Emergent mayflies (subimagoes and imagoes) were collected in 1988 at 34 sites (25 navigation pools), extending 1260 km from Little Falls, Minnesota, downstream to St. Louis, Missouri. Cadmium concentrations in composite samples of...

Evidence has linked toxicants in aquatic systems with cancer in fish and population level effects on species. Thus some types of tumors may be useful monitors of ecosystem health, at least as affected by genotoxins and promoters. However, tumors caused by purely genetic mechanisms or by virus would not be good indicators. Only neoplasms which have chemicals as a portion of their etiology...

A method is given for the recovery, cleanup, and analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that have been sequestered in SPMDs (semipermeable membrane devices). SPMDs are polymeric membranes enclosing lipids, and mimic the bioconcentration process of aquatic animals. SPMDs are used as passive, in situ monitors of contamination by organic pollutants of aquatic environments. The...

Exposure of aquatic organisms to suspended sediments can impair growth and survival and increase bioaccumulation of sediment-associated contaminants. However, evaluation of the effects of suspended sediments and their associated contaminants on aquatic organisms has been hampered by the lack of a practical and inexpensive exposure system for conducting bioassays. We present a cost...

Darwin National Reserve is a protected natural area on the north-west shore of the Rybinsk Reservoir, 350 km north of Moscow. In June 1989, six lakes in the Reserve and the reservoir were surveyed to assess lake acidity and the mercury content of perch, Perca fluviatilis. Five were seepage lakes with no permanent inlets or outlets and one was a drainage lake with both an inlet and an...

No abstract available.

In this chapter, we discuss methods for conducting bioaccumulation bioassays with fish; the advantages and disadvantages of using fish rather than invertebrates; and problems associated with bioaccumulation testing, with a special emphasis on statistical treatment.

Golden trout Oncorhynchus aguabonita obtained from a wild stock as fertilized eggs were reared in the laboratory for 21 months. The laboratory-reared golden trout in our study reached sexual maturity earlier and grew more rapidly than wild golden trout do (according to the scientific literature). Male fish averaged 35.6 cm in total length and 426 g in weight, and females averaged 36.2 cm...

Acute toxicity tests with reconstituted water were conducted to investigate the relationship between water hardness, salinity, and a mixture of trace elements found in irrigation drain waters entering Stillwater Wildlife Management Area (SWMA), near Fallon, Nevada. The SWMA has been the site of many fish kills in recent years, and previous toxicity studies indicated that one drain water...

The greenback cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki stomias is a threatened subspecies native to the upper South Platte and Arkansas rivers between Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado, an area also susceptible to acid deposition. In laboratory studies, we exposed this subspecies to nominal pHs of 4.5–6.5 and to nominal aluminum concentrations of 0, 50, 100, and 300 μg/L; the control was pH 6...

A laboratory study was conducted to investigate the role of the route of triphenyl phosphate (TPP) entry on its aquatic bioavailability and acute biological effects. Three TPP treatments were used for exposures of fish and invertebrates. These consisted of TPP dosed directly into water with and without clean sediment and TPP spiked onto sediment prior to aqueous exposures. Results of...

Fish-eating waterbirds from the Great Lakes of North America have shown symptoms of poisoning similar to those observed in laboratory exposures of various avian species to planar halogenated hydrocarbons (PHHs). PHHs, include among others, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and have been implicated in...