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Biomagnification of Mercury in Fish from Two Gold Mining-Impacted Tropical Marshes in Northern Colombia

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Abstract

Total mercury concentrations (T-Hg) and stable isotope ratios (δ15N and δ13C) were analyzed in the muscle of fish, collected at two marshes impacted by gold mining in Northern Colombia, to evaluate the seasonal and spatial behavior of these variables and mercury biomagnification based on their relationship with δ15N ratios in the fish. There was not significant (p > 0.05) seasonal differences (dry and rainy season) in δ15N and δ13C values in none marsh, suggesting that these fish species keep a similar feed pattern within each marsh along the year. However, there were significant differences (p < 0.05) between marshes in δ15N, δ13C, and T-Hg, as well as significant seasonal differences (p < 0.05) in T-Hg values for some species, suggesting the possible influence of factors, such as differences in length of food chains between marshes and different degree of anthropogenic impact in relation to human settlements, farmland, livestock (higher in Ayapel marsh), and gold mining activity (higher in La Raya marsh). Correlations analysis showed significant (p < 0.05) relationships between T-Hg concentrations and δ15N values, as well as trophic level, evidencing a T-Hg biomagnification process in the fish food chain from both marshes and consequently a potential health risk for human riverside inhabitants who eat these fish.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Administrative Department of Science, Technology, and Innovation of Colombia COLCIENCIAS for financial support (Grant 223-2010).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Water, Applied and Environmental Chemistry Group. Laboratory of Toxicology and Environmental Management, University of Córdoba, Cra 6 # 76 – 103, Montería, 230002, Colombia

    José Luis Marrugo-Negrete & Javier Alonso Ruiz-Guzmán

  2. Ana Carolina Ruiz-Fernández. Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Calz. J. Montes Camarena s/n, Col. Playa Sur, 82040, Mazatlán, Mexico

    Ana Carolina Ruiz-Fernández

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  1. José Luis Marrugo-Negrete
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Correspondence to José Luis Marrugo-Negrete.

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Marrugo-Negrete, J.L., Ruiz-Guzmán, J.A. & Ruiz-Fernández, A.C. Biomagnification of Mercury in Fish from Two Gold Mining-Impacted Tropical Marshes in Northern Colombia. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 74, 121–130 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-017-0459-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-017-0459-9

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