Data

This dataset presents mercury (Hg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentration data in waters (surface river water and community drinking water), biota, plant, and sediments that were collected across eight communities along the Pra and Ankobra Rivers in Western Ghana. Water and sediment samples were collected in October 2024 from eight rivers along the Ankobra and Pra Rivers, two rivers...

This dataset describes mercury (Hg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentration data and Hg and MeHg stable isotope values in plankton, waters, and sediments that were collected from two inland freshwater lakes in Madison, Wisconsin. Plankton and waters were collected monthly from May-October in 2021 and 2022 from Lake Mendota and Lake Monona and sediments were sampled in 2017. Samples were...

This dataset describes mercury (Hg) concentrations and methylation rate potentials that were measured in Lake Mendota, Wisconsin, US in 2020 and 2021. This work is a collaboration between the University of Wisconsin, University of California-Davis, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Samples were collected to examine the linkages between Hg methylation, biogeochemical conditions, and...

Great Salt Lake (GSL) is a designated Site of Hemispheric Importance for migratory birds by the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network. Elevated mercury (Hg) and methylmercury (MeHg) levels related to current inputs and past industrial contamination pose a potential threat to GSL biota, in addition to waterfowl hunters that utilize GSL and surrounding wetland areas. Sediments...

Water quality and fish tissue samples were collected and measured for mercury concentrations in a total of 23 small to medium size lakes in Minnesota to assess the impact that zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) invasion had on mercury bioaccumulation. Water samples were collected in October and November of 2021 from 22 lakes and analyzed for total mercury, methylmercury, dissolved...

As part of the larger Great Lakes Sediment Surveillance Program (GLSSP), the U.S. Geological Survey Mercury Research Laboratory (MRL) partnered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the University of Minnesota-Duluth to assess contaminant concentrations within surface sediments and sediment cores from the Laurentian Great Lakes. Sediments were assessed for mercury...

Laboratory experiments were performed between 2019 and 2020 to examine how dissolved organic matter (DOM) and phytoplankton (Raphidocelis subcapitata) cells alter mercury (Hg) uptake and isotope fractionation. Experiments were performed at ambient Hg to thiol ratios using natural organic matter isolates received from collaborators at the University of California-Davis. Two types of...

Samples were collected from Clear Lake, California from 2019-2022 by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) California Water Science Center, the USGS Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center (FRESC), the US Environmental Protection Agency, and EA Engineering Science and Technology Inc. to assess the extent and cycling of legacy mercury (Hg) contamination from Sulphur Bank Mine. Samples...

This dataset describes mercury (Hg) stable isotope values in fish dorsal muscle from different freshwater environments across the globe. Fish were collected at numerous field sites in North America, South and Central America, Africa, and Asia from 2006-2020. Sub-samples were provided by cooperators to the U.S. Geological Survey Mercury Research Laboratory and the University of Wisconsin...

This data release includes mercury concentrations and mercury stable isotope measurements measured in sediments and biological tissues collected from the Saint Louis River located in Minnesota. Sediments and biota were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and federal contractors (Battelle) from 2017-2021. Collection...

This dataset includes field and laboratory measurements of surface waters, pore waters, sediment, and fish from Water Conservation Areas and adjacent canals of the Florida Everglades (USA). Water, sediment, and fish samples were collected from Water Conservation Areas 1 (Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge), 2, and 3 and neighboring canals between 2012 and 2019. The...

Fish collected for taxonomic and systematic purposes are often preserved and then archived in museum collections. Preserved fish are commonly first fixed in a formalin solution and then transferred to ethanol for long-term storage. The wet preservation method can potentially introduce mercury (Hg) contamination or unintentionally extract Hg from tissue. An experiment was designed to test...