Brominated flame retardants in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from Alaska, the Canadian Arctic, East Greenland, and Svalbard.
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were determined in adipose tissue of adult and subadult female polar bears sampled between 1999 and 2002 from sub-populations in Arctic Canada, eastern Greenland, and Svalbard, and in males and females collected from 1994 to 2002 in northwestern Alaska. Only 4 congeners (BDE47, 99, 100, and 153) were consistently identified in all samples. BDE47 was the major PBDE congener representing from 65% to 82% of the sum (sigma) PBDEs. Age was not a significant covariate for individual PBDEs or sigmaPBDE. Higher proportions of BDE 99, 100, and 153 were generally found in samples from the Canadian Arctic than from Svalbard or the Bering-Chukchi Sea area of Alaska. Geometric mean sigmaPBDE concentrations were highest for female polar bear fat samples collected from Svalbard (50 ng/g lipid weight (lw)) and East Greenland (70 ng/g lw). Significantly lower sigmaPBDE concentrations were found in fat of bears from Canada and Alaska (means ranging from 7.6 to 22 ng/g lw).
National Water Research Institute, Environment Canada, Burlington, Ontario, Canada. derek.muir@cciw.ca
Derek C G
DC
Muir
Sean
S
Backus
Andrew E
AE
Derocher
Rune
R
Dietz
Thomas J
TJ
Evans
Geir W
GW
Gabrielsen
John
J
Nagy
Ross J
RJ
Norstrom
Christian
C
Sonne
Ian
I
Stirling
Mitch K
MK
Taylor
Robert J
RJ
Letcher
D000413:Alaska; D000818:Animals; D001110:Arctic Regions; D001966:Bromine / Q000032:analysis*; D002170:Canada; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D005260:Female; D005411:Flame Retardants / Q000032:analysis*; D006116:Greenland; D008297:Male; D011786:Quality Control; D001503:Ursidae
D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D005411:Flame Retardants; D001966:Bromine