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Mercury accumulation in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides Lacépède) within marsh ecosystems of the Florida Everglades, USA

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Abstract

This study evaluates factors, particularly water quality related, that may influence mercury (Hg) bioaccumulation in largemouth bass (LMB, Micropterus salmoides Lacépède) within the Everglades marshes of South Florida. The investigation is an empirical analysis of ambient data from both long-term fish monitoring and marsh water quality monitoring sites across the Everglades Protection Area. Previous Hg studies of Everglade’s marsh biota have focused on the role that sulfate plays in Hg bioaccumulation. While sulfate can be important under some environmental conditions, this empirical analysis in Everglades marshes showed that sulfate has little association with Hg concentrations in LMB. It is suggested that other water quality variables including water pH, alkalinity and specific conductance may have as much or more influence in the accumulation of Hg in LMB. Furthermore, tissue Hg concentration normalized to body-weight and age-specific growth rates were significantly correlated with Water Conservation Area (WCA)-1, WCA-2 and Everglades National Park (ENP) but not WCA-3. However, body condition was correlated negatively with Hg concentration only within WCA-2, WCA-3 and ENP; the relationship was not significant within WCA-1. This disparity between Hg concentration and body condition could be attributed to ecological effects including water quality and quantity conditions within each compartment of the system that are significant driving forces for biota abundance, trophic structure and distribution within the Everglades ecosystem. While water quality and quantity are important, trophic position of LMB has the potential to influence Hg accumulation dynamics. In spite of documented biogeochemical linkages to Hg accumulation, this empirical analysis did not demonstrate enough quantitative interaction to be useful for Hg management in the Everglades ecosystem.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Garth Redfield, Thomas Dreschel, Peter Rawlik, Brad Robbins, Meifang Zhou, and two anonymous reviewers for their review and input that ultimately improved the quality of this manuscript. Additionally we would like to acknowledge all of the current and past South Florida Water Management District and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission staff involved in the collection and laboratory analysis of the data used in this manuscript. Without their hard work, dedication and ample supply of blood (to feed the mosquitoes) this work would not be possible.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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  1. Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Ecosystem Projects, 2295 Vicotira Avenue, Fort Myers, FL, 33902, USA

    Paul Julian II

  2. South Florida Water Management District, Water Quality Bureau, West Palm Beach, USA

    Binhe Gu

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Julian, P., Gu, B. Mercury accumulation in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides Lacépède) within marsh ecosystems of the Florida Everglades, USA. Ecotoxicology 24, 202–214 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-014-1373-9

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