1,721,207 research outputs found
Lipophilic contaminants in marine mammals: review of the results of ten years' work at the Department of Environmental Biology, Siena University (Italy)
No full textOrganochlorine contaminants (HCB, DDTs and PCBs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were valuated in three Mediterranean cetaceans: the striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba), the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), and in three Argentinean pinnipeds: the southern sea lion (Otaria flavescens), the South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) and the subantarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus tropicalis). Two kinds of sample were obtained from the different species of cetaceans and pinnipeds in order to evaluate the toxicological risk to which a species or population is exposed: those from stranded specimens and those from free-ranging specimens. In this paper the use of a non-destructive approach, biopsy sampling, for free-ranging marine mammals is recommended
Chlorinated hydrocarbon (HCB, DDTs and PCBs) levels in cetaceans stranded along the Italian coasts: An overview
No full textConcentrations of HCB, DDTs and PCBs in the tissues and organs of cetaceans (Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus, Balaenoptera physalus, Steno bredanensis, Grampus griseus and Globicephala melaena) stranded along the Italian coasts in the period 1987-1993 are reported. The values are compared between species and between specimens of the same species. Chlorinated hydrocarbon (CH) levels were found to increase in relation to the quantity and type of lipids in each tissue and organ. Differences in accumulation encountered in the different species are principally due to different feeding habitats. Remarkable differences found between males and females of each species confirm that during gestation and lactation, females undergo disintoxication by passing much of their total burden of CHs to their young
Organochlorines with endocrine disrupting capacity in marine mammals: the case study of Mediterranean cetaceans
No full textEffects of endocrine disruptors in aquatic mammals
No full textIn the last few decades, various studies have shown that aquatic mammals are sensitive to the toxicological effects of certain xenobiotic compounds, including the large class of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Since some EDCs, particularly organochlorines, tend to bioaccumulate and biomagnify in the aquatic food chain, various aquatic mammals, particularly those high in the food chain, such as pinnipeds, odontocete cetaceans, and polar bears, are potentially "at risk". The main aim of this chapter is to define the state of the art on effects of endocrine disruptors in aquatic mammals, both freshwater and marine. Another aim is to formulate recommendations for future research in this field and finally to define what can be done internationally for hazard/risk assessment and communication of the findings
Pollution threat assessment and conservation status of Mediterranean shark species: how far have we gone?
Full text link- …
