Center for Conservation Biology, Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States of America.
Environmental and Fisheries Sciences Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2725 Montlake Blvd E, Seattle, WA 98112, United States of America.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2018 Nov;136:448-453. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.09.015. Epub 2018 Sep 27.
The Southern Resident killer whale population (Orcinus orca) was listed as endangered in 2005 and shows little sign of recovery. Exposure to contaminants and risk of an oil spill are identified threats. Previous studies on contaminants have largely focused on legacy pollutants. Here we measure polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in whale fecal (scat) samples. PAHs are a diverse group of hazardous compounds (e.g., carcinogenic, mutagenic), and are a component of crude and refined oil as well as motor exhaust. The central finding from this study indicates low concentrations of the measured PAHs (<10 ppb, wet weight), as expected; however, PAHs were as high as 104 ppb prior to implementation of guidelines mandating increased distance between vessels and whales. While causality is unclear, the potential PAH exposure from vessels warrants continued monitoring. Historical precedent similarly emphasizes the importance of having pre-oil spill exposure data available as baseline to guide remediation goals.
南方居留地的杀人鲸种群（虎鲸）于 2005 年被列为濒危物种，几乎没有恢复的迹象。接触污染物和石油泄漏的风险是确定的威胁。以前关于污染物的研究主要集中在传统污染物上。在这里，我们测量了鲸鱼粪便（粪便）样本中的多环芳烃（PAHs）。多环芳烃是一组危险的化合物（如致癌、致突变），是原油和精炼油以及汽车尾气的组成部分。这项研究的主要发现表明，所测量的多环芳烃浓度较低（<10 ppb，湿重），这是意料之中的；然而，在实施要求船只与鲸鱼保持更大距离的指南之前，多环芳烃的浓度高达 104 ppb。虽然因果关系尚不清楚，但船只造成的潜在多环芳烃暴露值得继续监测。历史先例同样强调了拥有石油泄漏前暴露数据作为指导补救目标的基线的重要性。
