Abstract
The river otter is considered to be an important bioindicator of water clarity. This study focuses on mercury contamination within this species. Throughout the study, individuals from habitats in the foothills and surroundings of the Liptovská Mara reservoir were analyzed. Twenty-three samples of liver tissue, and twenty-two samples of hair and kidney tissue were collected. Of these samples, the average mercury concentration detected in tissues was 10.6 mg/kg in guard hairs; 12.9 mg/kg in under hairs; 3.3 mg/kg in kidney tissue; and 4.3 mg/kg in liver tissue. Analysis of certified reference material (ERM-BB186—Pig Kidney) was used to assist in the development of an accurate method for total mercury determination in animal tissues, to check the quality of measurements, and to validate the measurement method. Our method represented a high average percentage of recovery (> 95%) in the standard reference material matrix and a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 5% or less. Seasonality was determined to be a significant factor influencing the level of contamination of a given individual, both through mercury methylation within the aquatic environment and through fish ingestion by this apex semi-aquatic predator (guard hairs (p = 0.01); underfur (p = 0.04); kidney (p = 0.03); liver (p = 0.03)). Sex, location, and body size were not found to have a significant influence on heavy metal concentrations in river otters sampled in terms of season.
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Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during this study are available from the author upon reasonable request. The author declares to cite any publicly available data on which the conclusions of the paper rely in the manuscript.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the employees of the TANAP State Forests (Tatra National Park) for providing samples of the river otter, especially Mr. Pavel Majek, Mrs. Gabriela Chovancová, and the guardians of the State Nature Protection, especially Michal Kalaš. I thank Professor Marián Janiga for valuable comments and correct guidance, colleagues especially Jaroslav Solár and Martina Haas for support and practical advice. I am indebted to the native English–speaking editor Dr. Amanda Clarahan for proofreading and improving English.
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The research that led to these results was supported by the Research Institute of High Mountain Biology of the University of Žilina.
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The bodies of river otters killed by natural causes as well as by traffic accidents were used in this study. Collection and subsequent manipulation were carried out according to ethical principles and with permission (No. 999212018–6.3, Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic, Department of State Nature and Landscape/Protection, as of 21–11-2018).
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Pitoňáková, T. Mercury concentration in the tissues of the Eurasian otter: a seasonal dependance in Slovakia. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 3795–3803 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-22459-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-22459-1