Title: Bioaccumulation of ¹³⁷Cs in anuran larvae utilizing a contaminated effluent canal on the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site

Abstract

As a result of activities such as nuclear weapons testing, nuclear power generation and waste disposal, and nuclear accidents, radiocesium (¹³⁷Cs) is a widely distributed radio-contaminant of concern that readily accumulates in exposed wildlife. Although bioaccumulation of ¹³⁷Cs is an important factor for understanding its fate within the environment, there are currently limited data available on bioaccumulation patterns of ¹³⁷Cs in amphibians, despite their widespread distribution and potential to transport contaminants between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the amount of time necessary for anuran larvae experimentally placed in a contaminated system to reach a steady-state whole-body ¹³⁷Cs concentration, and to determine the threshold at which that steady-state ¹³⁷Cs concentration occurred for tadpoles within our study system. By restricting uncontaminated bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) larvae to three experimental enclosures located along a ¹³⁷Cs contaminated effluent canal on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site, we modeled ¹³⁷Cs uptake through time using the von Bertalanffy modification of the Richards Model. The results of our modified Richards Model indicate that bullfrog tadpoles achieved steady-state ¹³⁷Cs concentrations of 3.68-4.34 Bq/g ¹³⁷Cs dry whole-body weight after 11.63-15.50 days of exposure among sampling sites, with an average ofmore » 3.94 Bq/g after 14.07 days exposure. Radiocesium accumulation in bullfrog tadpoles was more rapid than that reported for other biota studied from other contaminated systems, likely due to incidental ingestion of sediments and a diet consisting of periphyton and other items that accumulate high levels of ¹³⁷Cs. Furthermore, given their rapid accumulation of ¹³⁷Cs and inability to leave aquatic environments prior to metamorphosis, our data suggest amphibian larvae may be useful indicators for monitoring ¹³⁷Cs distributions and bioavailability within aquatic systems.« less

Authors:

Leaphart, James C. ^[1]; Wilms, Kaitlin C. ^[2]; Bryan, Jr., A. Lawrence ^[2]; Beasley, James C. ^[3]

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+ Show Author Affiliations

1. Univ. of Georgia, Aiken, SC (United States); Univ. of Georgia, Athens, GA (United States); Savannah River Ecology Lab., Aiken, SC (United States)
2. Univ. of Georgia, Aiken, SC (United States)
3. Univ. of Georgia, Aiken, SC (United States); Univ. of Georgia, Athens, GA (United States)

Publication Date:

Tue Mar 05 00:00:00 EST 2019

Research Org.:

Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River Ecology Lab. (SREL)

Sponsoring Org.:

USDOE

OSTI Identifier:

1844216

Grant/Contract Number:  

FC09-07SR22506; EM0004391

Resource Type:

Accepted Manuscript

Journal Name:

Journal of Environmental Radioactivity

Additional Journal Information:

Journal Volume: 203; Journal ID: ISSN 0265-931X

Publisher:

Elsevier

Country of Publication:

United States

Language:

English

Subject:

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.; 137Cs; Amphibian; Bioavailability; Bullfrog; Larvae; Radionuclides