Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Reproductive transfer and variation of body load of organochlorine pollutants with age in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus)

  • Published:
Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The body load of tDDT (p,p′DDT + o,p′DDT + p,p′DDE+p,p′TDE) and polychlorinated biphenyls (sum of congeners) was estimated for 169 fin whales to study age and sex-related variation and to calculate the quantity of these compounds transferred to offspring through reproduction. Blubber was the body compartment containing the greatest quantities of organochlorines, but its relative contribution to total load was lower than in other cetaceans because in fin whales muscle and bone are also significant lipid reserve sites. In male fin whales, organochlorine body loads increased with age but tended to reach a plateau in fully grown individuals. In adult females, loads decreased with age because of transfer to offspring canceling the rise in loads associated with body growth; as a consequence, the amount of organochlorines transferred during a reproductive cycle also declined with age. This transfer is lower than that found for other cetaceans because fin whales have a shorter lactation period. According to the calculations, the first offspring of a female fin whale receives about 1 g of PCB and about 1.5 g of tDDT. These amounts will progressively decrease in subsequent reproductive cycles to reach a minimum of 0.2 g PCB and 0.3 g tDDT in an old female. Therefore, the first calf delivered is the one most likely to be affected by pollutants.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abarnou A, Robineau D, Michel P (1986) Contamination par les organochlorés des dauphins de Commerson des iles Kerguelen. Oceanol Acta 9(1):19–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Addison RF, Brodie PF (1977) Organochlorine residues in maternal blubber from grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) from Sable Island, Nova Scotia. J Fish Res Board Can 34(7):937–941

    Google Scholar 

  • —, — (1987) Transfer of organochlorine residues from blubber through the circulatory system to milk in the lactating grey seal Halichoerus grypus. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 44(4):782–786

    Google Scholar 

  • Aguilar A (1983) Organochlorine pollution in sperm whales, Physeter macrocephalus, from the temperate waters of the Eastern North Atlantic. Mar Poll Bull 14(9):349–352

    Google Scholar 

  • -- (1985a) Biología y dinámica poblacional del rorcual común (Balaenoptera physalus) en las aguas atlánticas ibéricas. Ph D Dissertation, University of Barcelona, 487 pp

  • — (1985b) Compartmentation and reliability of sampling procedures in organochlorine pollution surveys of cetaceans. Residue Rev 95:91–114

    Google Scholar 

  • — (1987) Using organochlorine pollutants to discriminate marine mammal populations: a review and critique of the methods. Mar Mamm Sci 3(3):242–262

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Borrell A (1988) Age- and sex-related changes in organochlorine compound levels in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) from the eastern North Atlantic. Mar Environ Res 25:195–211

    Google Scholar 

  • —, — (1991) Heterogeneous distribution of organochlorine contaminants in the blubber of large whales: implications for sampling procedures. Mar Environ Res 31:275–286

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Olmos M, Lockyer C (1988) Sexual maturity in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) caught off Spain. Rep int Whal Commn 38:317–322

    Google Scholar 

  • Alzieu C, Duguy R (1979) Teneurs en composés organochlorés chez les cétacés et pinnipèdes frequentant les côtes françaises. Oceanol Acta 2(1):107–120

    Google Scholar 

  • Ando M (1978) Transfer of 2,4,5,2′,4′,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl and 2,2-bis-(p-chlorophenyl), 1,1,1-trichloroethane (p,p′-DDT) from maternal to newborn and suckling rats. Arch Toxicol 41:179–186

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergman A, Olsson M, Reiland S (1992) Skull-bone lesions in the Baltic grey seal (Halichoerus grypus). Ambio 21(8):517–519

    Google Scholar 

  • Bleavins MR, Breslin WJ, Aulerich RJ, Ringer RK (1984) Placental and mammary transfer of a polychlorinated biphenyl mixture (Aroclor® 1254) in the European ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Environ Toxicol Chem 3:637–644

    Google Scholar 

  • Borrell A (1993) PCB and DDTs in blubber of cetaceans from the northeastern North Atlantic. Mar Pollut Bull 26(3):146–151

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Aguilar A (1987) Variations in DDE percentage correlated to total DDT burden in the blubber of fin and sci whales. Mar Pollut Bull 18(20):70–74

    Google Scholar 

  • Clausen B, Andersen S (1988) Evaluation of bycatch and health status of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in Danish waters. Dan Rev Game Biol 13(5):1–20

    Google Scholar 

  • Cockcroft VG, de Kock AC, Lord AD, Ross GJB (1989) Organochlorines in bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus from the east coast of South Africa. S Afr J Mar Sci 8:207–217

    Google Scholar 

  • Curley A, Copeland MF, Kimbrough RD (1969) Chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticides in organs of stillborn and blood of newborn babies. Arch Environ Health 19:628–632

    Google Scholar 

  • Duinker JC, Hillebrand MTH (1979) Mobilization of organochlorines from female lipid tissue and transplacental transfer to fetus in a harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in a contaminated area. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 23:728–32

    Google Scholar 

  • —, —, Zeinstra T, Boon JP (1989) Individual chlorinated biphenyls and pesticides in tissues of some cetacean species from the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; tissue distribution and biotransformation. Aquat Mamm 15(3):95–124

    Google Scholar 

  • Faber JJ, Thornburg KL, Binder ND (1992) Physiology of placental transfer in mammals. Am Zool 32:343–354

    Google Scholar 

  • Fukushima M, Kawai S (1981) Variation of organochlorine residue concentration and burden in striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) with growth. In: Fujiyama T (ed) Studies on the levels of organochlorine compounds and heavy metals in the marine organisms. University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, pp 97–114

    Google Scholar 

  • Fuller GB, Hobson WC (1986) Effects of PCBs on reproduction in mammals. In: PCBs and the environment. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL Vol 3, pp 101–125

    Google Scholar 

  • Gaskin DE, Holdrinet M, Frank R (1982) DDT residues in blubber of harbour porpoise, Phocoena phocoena (L.), from Eastern Canadian waters during the five-year period 1969–73. In: Mammals in the seas. FAO Fisheries Series 5(4), pp 135–143

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Frank R, Holdrinet M (1983) Polychlorinated biphenyls in harbour porpoises, Phocoena phocoena (L.), from the Bay of Fundy, Canada and adjacent waters, with some information on chlordane and hexachlorobenzene levels. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 12:112–119

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes WJ (1975) Toxicology of pesticides. Williams and Wilkins Co, Baltimore, MD, 475 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Hidaka H, Tanabe S, Tatsukawa R (1983) DDT compounds and PCB isomers and congeners in Weddell seals and their fate in the Antarctic marine ecosystem. Agric Biol Chem 47(9):2009–2017

    Google Scholar 

  • Juchau MR (1983) Disposition of chemical contaminants in maternal-embryonic/fetal systems. In: Hazard assessment of chemicals. Current Developments Vol 2. Academic Press, NY, pp 95–132

    Google Scholar 

  • Kihlstrom JE, Olsson M, Jensen S, Johansson A, Ahlbom J, Bergman A (1992) Effects of PCB and different fractions of PCB on the reproduction of the mink (Mustela vison). Ambio 21(8):563–569

    Google Scholar 

  • Lockyer C (1976) Body weights of some species of large whales. J Cons Int Explor Mer 36(3):259–273

    Google Scholar 

  • — (1984) Age determination by means of the ear plug in baleen whales. Rep int Whal Commn 34:692–696

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Waters T (1986) Weights and anatomical measurements of northeastern Atlantic fin (Balaenoptera physalus, Linnaeus) and sei (B. borealis, Lesson) whales. Mar Mamm Sci 2(3):169–185

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsh H, Kasuya T (1986) Evidence for reproductive senescence in female cetaceans. Rep int Whal Commn (Sp Iss 8):57–74

  • Mead JG, Odell DK, Wells RS, Scott MD (1980) Observations on a mass stranding of spinner dolphins, Stenella longirostris, from the west coast of Florida. Fish Bull 78(2):353–360

    Google Scholar 

  • Miyazaki N, Nakamura I, Tanabe S, Tatsukawa R (1987) A stranding of Mesoplodon Stejnegeri in the Maizuru Bay, Sea of Japan. Sci Rep Whales Res Inst Tokyo 38:91–105

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Nakayama K (1989) Records of cetaceans in the waters of the Amami Islands. Mem Nat Sci Mus 22:235–249

    Google Scholar 

  • Morris RJ, Law RJ, Allchin CR, Kelly CA, Fileman CF (1989) Metals and organochlorines in dolphins and porpoises of Cardigan Bay, West Wales. Mar Pollut Bull 20(10):512–523

    Google Scholar 

  • Morrisey RE, Schwetz BA (1989) Reproductive and developmental toxicity in animals. In: Kimbrough RD, Jensen AA (eds) Halogenated biphenyls, terphenyls, naphtalenes, dibenzodioxins and related products. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 195–225

    Google Scholar 

  • Muir DCG, Ford CA, Stewart REA, Smith TG, Addison RF, Zinck ME, Béland P (1990) Organochlorine contaminants in belugas, Delphinapterus leucas, from Canadian waters. Can Bull Fish Aquat Sci 224:165–190

    Google Scholar 

  • Perrin WF, Reilly SB (1984) Reproductive parameters of dolphins and small whales of the family Delphinidae. Rep int Whal Commn (Sp Iss 6):97–125

  • Reijnders PJH (1986) Reproductive failure in common seals feeding on fish from polluted coastal waters. Nature (London) 324:456–457

    Google Scholar 

  • Ross GJB (1984) The smaller cetaceans of the South East coast of southern Africa. Ann Cape Prov Mus (Nat Hist) 15(2):173–410

    Google Scholar 

  • Saschenbrecker PW (1973) Levels of DDT and PCB compounds in North Atlantic fin-back whales. Can J Comp Med 37:203–206

    Google Scholar 

  • Tanabe S, Tatsukawa R, Tanaka H, Maruyama K, Miyazaki N, Fujiyama T (1981) Distribution and total burdens of chlorinated hydrocarbons in bodies of striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba). Agric Biol Chem 45(11):2569–2578

    Google Scholar 

  • —, —, Maruyama K, Miyazaki N (1982) Transplacental transfer of PCBs and chlorinated pesticides from the pregnant striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) to her fetus. Agric Biol Chem 46(5):1249–1254

    Google Scholar 

  • --, Miura S, Tatsukawa R (1985) Variations of organochlorine residues with age and sex in Antarctic minke whale. Mem Natl Inst Polar Res Sp Iss 44:174–81

  • Thomas PT, Hinsdill RD (1980) Perinatal PCB exposure and its effect on the immune system of young rabbits. Drug Chem Toxicol 2:1–4

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner JC (1979) Transplacental movement of organochlorine pesticide residues in desert bighorn sheep. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 21:116–124

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Animal Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, 08071, Barcelona, Spain

    A. Aguilar

  2. Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Università degli Studi di Siena, Via Delle Cerchia 3, 53100, Siena, Italy

    A. Borrell

Authors
  1. A. Aguilar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. A. Borrell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Aguilar, A., Borrell, A. Reproductive transfer and variation of body load of organochlorine pollutants with age in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus). Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 27, 546–554 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00214848

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00214848

Keywords

Search

Navigation