Trophic ecology influence on metal bioaccumulation in marine fish: Inference from stable isotope and fatty acid analyses

The link between trophic ecology and metal accumulation in marine fish species was investigated through a multi-tracers approach combining fatty acid (FA) and stable isotope (SI) analyses on fish from two contrasted sites on the coast of Senegal, one subjected to anthropogenic metal effluents and another one less impacted. The concentrations of thirteen trace metal elements (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Li, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn, U, and Zn) were measured in fish liver. Individuals from each site were classified into three distinct groups according to their liver FA and muscle SI compositions. Trace element concentrations were tested between groups revealing that bioaccumulation of several metals was clearly dependent on the trophic guild of fish. Furthermore, correlations between individual trophic markers and trace metals gave new insights into the determination of their origin. Fatty acids revealed relationships between the dietary regimes and metal accumulation that were not detected with stable isotopes, possibly due to the trace metal elements analysed in this study. In the region exposed to metallic inputs, the consumption of benthic preys was the main pathway for metal transfer to the fish community while in the unaffected one, pelagic preys represented the main source of metals. Within pelagic sources, metallic transfer to fish depended on phytoplankton taxa on which the food web was based, suggesting that microphytoplankton (i.e., diatoms and dinoflagellates) were a more important source of exposition than nano- and picoplankton. This study confirmed the influence of diet in the metal accumulation of marine fish communities, and proved that FAs are very useful and complementary tools to SIs to link metal accumulation in fish with their trophic ecology.

Keyword(s)

Trace elements, Biochemical tracers, Diet, Contamination, Senegal, Tropical fish

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Publisher's official version
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Table 1. δ15N, δ13C (before and after normalisation) and C/N ratios of the individual fish from the two locations.
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Table 2. Correlations (561) between fatty acids in the liver of fish from Dakar.
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Table 3. Correlations (561) between fatty acids in the liver of fish from Casamance.
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Author's final draft
44923 Ko
How to cite
Le Croizier Gael, Schaal Gauthier, Gallon Regis, Fall Massal, Le Grand Fabienne, Munaron Jean-Marie, Rouget Marie-Laure, Machu Eric, Le Loc'h Francois, Lae Raymond, de Morais Luis Tito (2016). Trophic ecology influence on metal bioaccumulation in marine fish: Inference from stable isotope and fatty acid analyses. Science Of The Total Environment. 573. 83-95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.08.035, https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00348/45908/

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