Insecticide residues in big game mammals of South Dakota

An analysis was made of eight insecticide residues in the renal fat tissue of 23 white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), 13 mule deer (O. hemionus), 9 pronghorns (Antilocapra americana), and 2 elk (Cervus canadensis) collected in South Dakota during the fall of 1964. Identification and quantitative analysis of the insecticide residues were accomplished by thin-layer and gas-liquid chromatography. Eighty-five percent of the samples had residues of DDT with an average of 0.13 ppm. DDD residues were found in 11 percent of the samples, DDE in 38 percent, dieldrin in 38 percent, and lindane in 15 percent, with an average of 0.07, 0.04, 0.03, and 0.04 ppm, respectively. Heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, and aldrin were not detected in concentrations above the limits of the experiment set by the investigators.