Legacy and emerging organic contaminants: levels and profiles in top predator fish from the western Indian Ocean in relation to their trophic ecology

Type Article
Date 2020-09
Language English
Author(s) Munschy Catherine1, Vigneau E.2, Bely Nadege1, Héas-Moisan K.1, Olivier Nathalie1, Pollono Charles1, Hollanda S.3, Bodin Nathalie4
Affiliation(s) 1 : IFREMER (French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea), Laboratory of Biogeochemistry of Organic Contaminants, Rue de l’Ile d’Yeu, BP 21105, 44311 Nantes Cedex 3, France
2 : StatSC, ONIRIS, INRA, 44322, Nantes, France
3 : SFA (Seychelles Fishing Authority), Fishing Port, Victoria, Mahé, Seychelles
4 : Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), UMR MARBEC, Fishing Port, Victoria, Mahe, Seychelles
Source Environmental Research (0013-9351) (Elsevier BV), 2020-09 , Vol. 188 , P. 109761 (15p.)
DOI 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109761
WOS© Times Cited 24
Keyword(s) Tropical tunas, Swordfish, Seychelles, Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs)
Abstract Tuna and billfish are large pelagic fish of ecological importance in open oceans. As top predators with a long lifespan, they are prone to exposure to various contaminants such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and contaminants of emerging concern. In this study, three pollutant families were investigated, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorinated pesticides (OCPs) and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), including perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs). Contamination was investigated in individuals from three tropical tuna species, namely bigeye (Thunnus obesus), skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis) and yellowfin (Thunnus albacares) tunas and the billfish swordfish (Xiphias gladius), collected from various areas of the western Indian Ocean (WIO) in 2013-2014. Contamination levels and profiles were examined in fish muscle, together with biological parameters (fish length / age, sex, lipid content) and ecological tracers (carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes). POP levels were low in all species in comparison to other locations worldwide, revealing a low impact of anthropogenic organic contaminants in the WIO. A predominance of OCPs (especially DDTs) versus PCBs was highlighted in all species; PFASs were predominant over chlorinated POPs in tunas. Among the studied PFASs, long-chain PFCAs were found to prevail over PFOS in all species. Organic contaminant profiles differed across species according to their foraging habitat; swordfish and bigeye tuna, which both feed in deep oceanic layers, showed similarities in their contaminant profiles. Geographically, the distinct DDT profiles of fish from the Mozambique Channel suggested an exposure to different DDT sources, in line with regional use of this insecticide and coupled with an extended residence time of fish in the Channel. To our knowledge, the data presented here are among the first obtained for legacy and emerging organic contaminants in various species of large pelagic predators from the WIO.
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Munschy Catherine, Vigneau E., Bely Nadege, Héas-Moisan K., Olivier Nathalie, Pollono Charles, Hollanda S., Bodin Nathalie (2020). Legacy and emerging organic contaminants: levels and profiles in top predator fish from the western Indian Ocean in relation to their trophic ecology. Environmental Research, 188, 109761 (15p.). Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.109761 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00633/74463/