Species- and element-specific patterns of metal flux from contaminated wetlands versus metals shed with exuviae in emerging dragonflies

Fletcher, Dean E.; Lindell, Angela H.; Stankus, Paul T.; Fulghum, Christina M.; Spivey, Erin A.

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2022.118976

Title: Species- and element-specific patterns of metal flux from contaminated wetlands versus metals shed with exuviae in emerging dragonflies

Journal Article · 08 February 2022 · Environmental Pollution

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.118976 · OSTI ID:1977101

Fletcher, Dean E. ^[1]; Lindell, Angela H. ^[2]; Stankus, Paul T. ^[2]; Fulghum, Christina M. ^[2];

^[2]

University of Georgia, Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River Ecology Laboratory; OSTI
University of Georgia, Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River Ecology Laboratory

Dragonfly adults and their aquatic immature stages are important parts of food webs and provide a link between aquatic and terrestrial components. During emergence, contaminants can be exported into terrestrial food webs as immature adults fly away or be shed with their exuviae and remain in the wetland. Our previous work established metals accumulating in dragonfly nymphs throughout a contaminated constructed wetland designed to regulate pH and sequester trace metals from an industrial effluent line. In this paper we evaluated the concentration and mass of metals leaving the wetland in flying emergents versus remaining in the wetland with the shed exuviae in 10 species of dragonflies belonging to 8 genera. Nine elements (Cu, Zn, Cd, Mn, V, Mg, Fe, Al, Pb) were evaluated that include essential and nonessential elements as well as trace and major metals. Metal concentrations in the emergent body and exuviae can differ by orders of magnitude. Aluminum, Fe, Mn, and Pb were largely shed in the exuviae. Vanadium and Cd were more variable among species but also tended to be shed with the exuviae. In contrast, Cu, Zn, and Mg showed a higher tendency to leave the wetland with an emerging dragonfly. Metals shed in dragonfly exuviae can moderate the transport of metals from contaminated wetlands. Taxonomic- and metal-specific variability in daily metal flux from the wetland depended upon concentration accumulated, individual body mass, and number of individuals emerging, with each factor's relative importance often differing among species. This illustrates the importance of evaluating the mass of metals in an individual and not only concentrations. Furthermore, differences in numbers of each species emerging will magnify differences in individual metal flux when calculating community metal flux. A better understanding of the variability of metal accumulation in nymphs/larvae and metal shedding during metamorphosis among both metals and species is needed.

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Research Organization:: University of Georgia, Athens, GA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM)

Grant/Contract Number:: EM0004391

OSTI ID:: 1977101

Journal Information:: Environmental Pollution, Journal Name: Environmental Pollution Journal Issue: C Vol. 300; ISSN 0269-7491

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
aquatic insect
aquatic-terrestrial linkages
contamination
dragonfly
insect emergence
metal

Title: Species- and element-specific patterns of metal flux from contaminated wetlands versus metals shed with exuviae in emerging dragonflies

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