Contaminant Bioaccumulation through Food Webs Active
This is a broad theme representing the largest component of the Contaminant Ecology Research Program, acting as a bridge between the “Habitat and Land Use Influences” and “Ecological Effects” themes. “Contaminant Bioaccumulation” focuses on quantifying the transfer or movement of contaminants through food webs, and identifying the primary landscape factors and ecological mechanisms that are responsible for the variation in transfer rates among habitats and ecosystems. This theme largely follows the classic community ecology approach of quantifying energy flow through ecosystems, investigating interspecies interactions, and evaluating the demographic responses of species to various disturbances. As opposed to simply measuring contaminant trends in top predators, this ecological foundation provides a powerful framework in which to investigate the movement of contaminants through ecosystems that is explicitly based on how the ecosystems function. As such, results contribute to the body of knowledge regarding how ecological interactions contribute to contaminant cycling.
Active Projects
- Western North America Mercury Synthesis: A Landscape-scale Analysis of Mercury Cycling, Bioaccumulation, and Risk Linking Long-term Datasets
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Fish from High-Elevation Lakes in National Parks across the Western United States
- Off-channel Habitats in the Willamette River: Implications for Methylmercury Cycling, Bioaccumulation, and Risk
- Effects of Non-native Fishes on Mercury Bioaccumulation and Risk to Pond-breeding Salamanders in Olympic National Park
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Terrestrial Songbirds and the Influence of Aquatic Energy Subsidies
- Mercury Cycling and Ecological Risk across Habitats in Mount Rainier National Park
- The Effects of Wetland Restoration on Mercury Bioaccumulation in the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project: Using the Biosentinel Toolbox to Monitor Changes across Multiple Habitats and Spatial Scales
- Mercury Cycling and Bioaccumulation across the Aleutian Archipelago: Landscape Patterns of Wildlife Risk within the North Pacific Ocean
- Mercury Contamination in Waterbird Eggs and Risk to Avian Reproduction at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and Great Salt Lake
- Incorporating Wildlife Mercury Exposure and Risk Estimates Using Biomagnification Factors into BOG California Lake Monitoring
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Waterbodies of the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest
- Mercury Exposure and Risk to Purple Martins Breeding in the Willamette Valley, Oregon
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Agricultural wetlands as potential hotspots for mercury bioaccumulation: Experimental evidence using caged fish
Invertebrate mercury bioaccumulation in permanent, seasonal, and flooded rice wetlands within California's Central Valley
Selenium bioaccumulation and body condition in shorebirds and terns breeding in San Francisco Bay, California, USA
Mercury bioaccumulation and risk to three waterbird foraging guilds is influenced by foraging ecology and breeding stage
Rapid changes in small fish mercury concentrations in estuarine wetlands: Implications for wildlife risk and monitoring programs
Changes in fish diets and food web mercury bioaccumulation induced by an invasive planktivorous fish
Mercury correlations among six tissues for four waterbird species breeding in San Francisco Bay, California, USA
Mercury contamination and effects on survival of American avocet and black-necked stilt chicks in San Francisco Bay
Mercury concentrations in blood and feathers of prebreeding Forster's terns in relation to space use of San Francisco Bay, California, USA, habitats
Mercury concentrations and space use of pre-breeding American avocets and black-necked stilts in San Francisco Bay
- Overview
This is a broad theme representing the largest component of the Contaminant Ecology Research Program, acting as a bridge between the “Habitat and Land Use Influences” and “Ecological Effects” themes. “Contaminant Bioaccumulation” focuses on quantifying the transfer or movement of contaminants through food webs, and identifying the primary landscape factors and ecological mechanisms that are responsible for the variation in transfer rates among habitats and ecosystems. This theme largely follows the classic community ecology approach of quantifying energy flow through ecosystems, investigating interspecies interactions, and evaluating the demographic responses of species to various disturbances. As opposed to simply measuring contaminant trends in top predators, this ecological foundation provides a powerful framework in which to investigate the movement of contaminants through ecosystems that is explicitly based on how the ecosystems function. As such, results contribute to the body of knowledge regarding how ecological interactions contribute to contaminant cycling.
Active Projects
- Western North America Mercury Synthesis: A Landscape-scale Analysis of Mercury Cycling, Bioaccumulation, and Risk Linking Long-term Datasets
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Fish from High-Elevation Lakes in National Parks across the Western United States
- Off-channel Habitats in the Willamette River: Implications for Methylmercury Cycling, Bioaccumulation, and Risk
- Effects of Non-native Fishes on Mercury Bioaccumulation and Risk to Pond-breeding Salamanders in Olympic National Park
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Terrestrial Songbirds and the Influence of Aquatic Energy Subsidies
- Mercury Cycling and Ecological Risk across Habitats in Mount Rainier National Park
- The Effects of Wetland Restoration on Mercury Bioaccumulation in the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project: Using the Biosentinel Toolbox to Monitor Changes across Multiple Habitats and Spatial Scales
- Mercury Cycling and Bioaccumulation across the Aleutian Archipelago: Landscape Patterns of Wildlife Risk within the North Pacific Ocean
- Mercury Contamination in Waterbird Eggs and Risk to Avian Reproduction at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and Great Salt Lake
- Incorporating Wildlife Mercury Exposure and Risk Estimates Using Biomagnification Factors into BOG California Lake Monitoring
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Waterbodies of the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest
- Mercury Exposure and Risk to Purple Martins Breeding in the Willamette Valley, Oregon
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
- Data
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
- Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Filter Total Items: 22Agricultural wetlands as potential hotspots for mercury bioaccumulation: Experimental evidence using caged fish
Wetlands provide numerous ecosystem services, but also can be sources of methylmercury (MeHg) production and export. Rice agricultural wetlands in particular may be important sites for MeHg bioaccumulation due to their worldwide ubiquity, periodic flooding schedules, and high use by wildlife. We assessed MeHg bioaccumulation within agricultural and perennial wetlands common to California’s CentralAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, Collin A. Eagles-SmithInvertebrate mercury bioaccumulation in permanent, seasonal, and flooded rice wetlands within California's Central Valley
We examined methylmercury (MeHg) bioavailability in four of the most predominant wetland habitats in California's Central Valley agricultural region during the spring and summer: white rice, wild rice, permanent wetlands, and shallowly-flooded fallow fields. We sampled MeHg and total mercury (THg) concentrations in two aquatic macroinvertebrate taxa at the inlets, centers, and outlets of four replAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, A. Keith Miles, Collin A. Eagles-SmithSelenium bioaccumulation and body condition in shorebirds and terns breeding in San Francisco Bay, California, USA
The present study evaluated Se bioaccumulation in four waterbird species (n = 206 birds) that breed within San Francisco Bay, California, USA: American avocets (Recurvirostra americana), black-necked stilts (Himantopus mexicanus), Forster's terns (Sterna forsteri), and Caspian terns (Hydroprogne caspia). Selenium concentrations were variable and influenced by several factors, including species, reAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, Collin A. Eagles-SmithMercury bioaccumulation and risk to three waterbird foraging guilds is influenced by foraging ecology and breeding stage
We evaluated mercury (Hg) in five waterbird species representing three foraging guilds in San Francisco Bay, CA. Fish-eating birds (Forster's and Caspian terns) had the highest Hg concentrations in thier tissues, but concentrations in an invertebrate-foraging shorebird (black-necked stilt) were also elevated. Foraging habitat was important for Hg exposure as illustrated by within-guild differencesAuthorsCollin A. Eagles-Smith, Joshua T. Ackerman, S.E.W. de la Cruz, John Y. TakekawaRapid changes in small fish mercury concentrations in estuarine wetlands: Implications for wildlife risk and monitoring programs
Small fish are commonly used to assess mercury (Hg) risk to wildlife and monitor Hg in wetlands. However, limited research has evaluated short-term Hg variability in small fish, which can have important implications for monitoring programs and risk assessment. We conducted a time-series study of Hg concentrations in two small fish species representing benthic (longjaw mudsuckers [Gillichthys mirabAuthorsCollin A. Eagles-Smith, Joshua T. AckermanChanges in fish diets and food web mercury bioaccumulation induced by an invasive planktivorous fish
The invasion, boom, collapse, and reestablishment of a population of the planktivorous threadfin shad in Clear Lake, California, USA, were documented over a 20-year period, as were the effects of changing shad populations on diet and mercury (Hg) bioaccumulation in nearshore fishes. Threadfin shad competitively displaced other planktivorous fish in the lake, such as inland silversides, young-of-yeAuthorsCollin A. Eagles-Smith, Thomas H. Suchanek, Arthur E. Colwell, Norman L. Anderson, Peter B. MoyleMercury correlations among six tissues for four waterbird species breeding in San Francisco Bay, California, USA
Despite a large body of research concerning mercury (Hg) in birds, no single tissue has been used consistently to assess Hg exposure, and this has hampered comparisons across studies. We evaluated the relationships of Hg concentrations among tissues in four species of waterbirds (American avocets [Recurvirostra americana], black-necked stilts [Himantopus mexicanus], Caspian terns [Hydroprogne caspAuthorsCollin A. Eagles-Smith, Joshua T. Ackerman, T.L. Adelsbach, John Y. Takekawa, A.K. Miles, R.A. KeisterMercury contamination and effects on survival of American avocet and black-necked stilt chicks in San Francisco Bay
We evaluated whether mercury influenced survival of free-ranging American avocet (Recurvirostra americana) and black-necked stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) chicks in San Francisco Bay, California. Using radio telemetry, we radio-marked 158 avocet and 79 stilt chicks at hatching and tracked them daily until their fate was determined. We did not find strong support for an influence of in ovo mercury exAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, John Y. Takekawa, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, S. A. IversonMercury concentrations in blood and feathers of prebreeding Forster's terns in relation to space use of San Francisco Bay, California, USA, habitats
We examined mercury concentrations and space use of prebreeding Forster's terns (Sterna forsteri) in San Francisco Bay, California, USA, to assess factors influencing mercury levels in piscivorous birds. In 2005 and 2006, we collected blood and feathers from 122 Forster's terns and radio-marked and tracked 72 terns to determine locations of dietary mercury uptake. Capture site and capture date werAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, John Y. Takekawa, J.D. Bluso, T.L. AdelsbachMercury concentrations and space use of pre-breeding American avocets and black-necked stilts in San Francisco Bay
We examined factors influencing mercury concentrations in pre-breeding American avocets (Recurvirostra americana) and black-necked stilts (Himantopus mexicanus), the two most abundant breeding shorebirds in San Francisco Bay, California. We tested the effects of species, site, sex, year, and date on total mercury concentrations in blood of pre-breeding adult birds and used radio telemetry to deterAuthorsJoshua T. Ackerman, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, John Y. Takekawa, Scott A. Demers, Terrence L. Adelsbach, J.D. Bluso, A. Keith Miles, Nils Warnock, Thomas H. Suchanek, Steven E. Schwarzbach