Lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, and arsenic levels in eggs, feathers, and tissues of Canada geese of the New Jersey Meadowlands
- New Jersey Audubon Society, 11 Hardscrabble Road, Bernardsville, NJ 07924 (United States)
- Division of Life Sciences, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8082 (United States)
- NJ Meadowlands Commission, One DeKorte Park Plaza, Lyndhurst, NJ 07071 (United States)
- Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (United States)
The New Jersey Meadowlands are located within the heavily urbanized New York/New Jersey Harbor Estuary and have been subject to contamination due to effluent and runoff from industry, traffic, and homes along the Hackensack River and nearby waterways. These extensive wetlands, though heavily impacted by development and pollution, support a wide array of bird and other wildlife species. Persistent contaminants may pose threats to birds in these habitats, affecting reproduction, egg hatchability, nestling survival, and neurobehavioral development. Metals of concern in the Meadowlands include arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, and mercury. These metals were analyzed in eggs, feathers, muscle, and liver of Canada geese (Branta canadensis) breeding in four wetland sites. We sampled geese collected during control culling (n=26) and collected eggs from goose nests (n=34). Levels of arsenic were below the minimum quantification level (MQL) in most samples, and cadmium and mercury were low in all tissues sampled. Chromium levels were high in feather samples. Mercury levels in eggs of Canada geese, an almost exclusively herbivorous species, were lower (mean {+-}SE 4.29{+-}0.30 {mu}g/g wet weight) than in eggs of omnivorous mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), and insectivorous red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) and marsh wrens (Cistothorus palustris) from the Meadowlands, consistent with trophic level differences. However, lead levels were higher in the goose eggs (161{+-}36.7 ng/g) than in the other species. Geese also had higher levels of lead in feathers (1910{+-}386 ng/g) than those seen in Meadowlands passerines. By contrast, muscle and liver lead levels were within the range reported in waterfowl elsewhere, possibly a reflection of metal sequestration in eggs and feathers. Elevated lead levels may be the result of sediment ingestion or ingestion of lead shot and sinkers. Finally, lead levels in goose liver (249{+-}44.7 ng/g) and eggs (161{+-}36.7 ng/g) may pose a risk if consumed frequently by humans. Mill Creek, the site with the most documented prior contamination, had significantly elevated cadmium, chromium, mercury, and lead in goose tissues. - Highlights: {yields} The NJ Meadowlands include extensive wetlands in the urban NYC metropolitan area. {yields} We analyzed eggs, feathers, muscle, and liver of Canada geese at 4 Meadowlands sites. {yields} As, Cd, and Hg were low in all tissues sampled, while Cr was high in feathers. {yields} Pb was higher in goose eggs and feathers than in other Meadowlands bird species. {yields} Pb in muscle and liver was lower and within the range seen in waterfowl elsewhere.
- OSTI ID:
- 22143618
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Research, Vol. 111, Issue 6; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2011 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0013-9351
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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