Evaluation of biological indicators for assessment and prediction of adverse ecological impacts from contaminants in coastal ecosystems. Final report.

Abstract

This report describes a project that was undertaken to evaluate a suite of biological indicators in predator species to be used as a measurement tool for prediction of adverse effects from exposure to contaminants in coastal ecosystems of the Gulf of Mexico. The approach utilized key predator species, blacktip shark and bottlenose dolphin, as apex predators representing the top trophic level of the food web. Apex predators are prolific in their dietary habits feeding on organisms at various levels of the food chain. This study represents a unique approach to ecological risk assessment. Although several biochemical, physiological and histological biomarkers have been used in the laboratory and field at the suborganismal, and primary levels of the food web in aquatic toxicology, few studies have concentrated on apex predators. Samples were collected as a result of cooperation with other ongoing projects at Mote Marine Laboratory. Contaminants for which the analyses were preformed include chlorinated hydrocarbons, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons and select toxic metals. Results of the project include a summary of tissue concentrations of toxic substance residues and biomarker measurements in blacktip shark and bottlenose dolphins in the Tampa Bay region of the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and the evaluation of select biomarkers and relationship to tissue reside levels in top predators to assess exposure and/or effect.