Rapid increases in mercury concentrations in the eggs of mallards fed methylmercury.
To determine how quickly breeding birds would have to feed in a mercury-contaminated area before harmful concentrations of mercury, as methylmercury, built up in their eggs, we fed female mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) a control diet or diets containing 0.5, 1, 2, 4, or 8 microg/g mercury (on what was close to a dry weight basis) as methylmercury chloride for 23 d. After 18 d on their respective mercury diets, the eggs of mallards fed 0.5, 1, 2, 4, or 8 microg/g mercury contained 97.8, 86.0, 89.9, 88.9, and 85.9%, respectively, of the peak concentrations reached after 23 d. Depending on the dietary concentration of mercury, no more than approximately a week may be required for harmful concentrations (0.5-0.8 microg/g, wet weight) to be excreted into eggs.
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, US Geological Survey, BARC-East, Beltsville, Maryland 20705, USA. gheinz@usgs.gov
Gary H
GH
Heinz
David J
DJ
Hoffman
Jon D
JD
Klimstra
Katherine R
KR
Stebbins
D000818:Animals; D004372:Ducks / Q000378:metabolism*; D004531:Eggs / Q000032:analysis*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*
D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D008628:Mercury