Organic contaminants in West Indian Manatees from Florida and Mexico: a pilot study.

Abstract

In August 2003, the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission hosted a consultation entitled Future Directions in Marine Mammal Research. The goals of the consultation included assessing research needs for issues of critical concern for marine mammal conservation in the United States and internationally over the next few decades. Among the ten principal topics considered by consultation participants, four dealt explicitly with health, stress, disease, and trauma, and two others considered effects of habitat change and climate change on marine mammal health and well being (Reynolds et al. 2005). It was abundantly clear that the workshop organizers and participants viewed the general issue of marine mammal health as critical, and it became equally clear that scientific efforts to date have provided an incomplete picture regarding marine mammal health and the effects of various stressors, including contaminants (O'Hara and O'Shea 2005). The workshop participants recommended that steps be taken scientifically and programmatically to address deficiencies. For marine mammals in the wider Caribbean (which includes waters of Florida), one of the more pervasive perceived threats to reproduction, health and general status involves the effects of contaminants (United Nations Environment Programme, 2008). However, little is known with regard to body burdens and effects to substantiate concerns.