The Institute of Environmental and Human Health, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, United States.
Environmental and Fisheries Sciences Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Seattle, Washington 98112, United States.
Environ Sci Technol. 2022 Dec 6;56(23):17119-17130. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.2c05998. Epub 2022 Nov 8.
Exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) can significantly impact marine mammal health, reproduction, and fitness. This study addresses a significant 20-year gap in gray whale contaminant monitoring through analysis of POPs in 120 blubber biopsies. The scope of this substantial sample set is noteworthy in its range and diversity with collection between 2003 and 2017 along North America's west coast and across diverse sex, age, and reproductive parameters, including paired mothers and calves. Mean blubber concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (∑PCBs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (∑DDTs), and chlordanes (∑CHLs) generally decreased since previous reports (1968-1999). This is the first report of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and select hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) in this species. Statistical modeling of the 19 most frequently detected compounds in this dataset revealed sex-, age-, and reproductive status-related patterns, predominantly attributed to maternal offloading. Mean POP concentrations differed significantly by sex in adults (17 compounds, up to 3-fold higher in males) but not in immatures (all 19 compounds). Mean POP concentrations were significantly greater in adults versus immatures in both males (17 compounds, up to 12-fold) and females (13 compounds, up to 3-fold). POP concentrations were detected with compound-specific patterns in nursing calves, confirming maternal offloading for the first time in this species.
接触持久性有机污染物(POPs)会对海洋哺乳动物的健康、繁殖和适应能力产生重大影响。本研究通过分析 120 个鲸脂活检样本中的 POPs,填补了灰鲸污染物监测长达 20 年的空白。本研究样本量较大,采集范围广泛,涵盖了 2003 年至 2017 年北美的西海岸,涉及不同的性别、年龄和繁殖参数,包括配对的母鲸和幼鲸。多氯联苯(∑PCBs)、滴滴涕(∑DDTs)和氯丹(∑CHLs)的平均鲸脂浓度总体上较之前的报告(1968-1999 年)有所下降。这是首次在该物种中报告多溴二苯醚(PBDEs)和部分六氯环己烷(HCHs)。对该数据集 19 种最常检测化合物的统计建模揭示了与性别、年龄和繁殖状态相关的模式,主要归因于母体转移。成年雄性(17 种化合物,高 3 倍)的 POP 浓度明显高于雌性(17 种化合物),但未成年者(所有 19 种化合物)没有差异。成年雄性(17 种化合物,高 12 倍)和雌性(13 种化合物,高 3 倍)的 POP 浓度均明显高于未成年者。哺乳幼鲸的 POP 浓度具有特定化合物模式,首次证实了该物种存在母体转移。