title: An assessment of contaminant concentrations in toothed whale species of the NW Iberian Peninsula: part I. Persistent organic pollutants.
abstract: Concentrations and patterns of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the blubber of the five most common toothed whales off the Northwest Iberian Peninsula (NWIP), specifically common dolphin, long-finned pilot whale, harbour porpoise, striped dolphin and bottlenose dolphin, were investigated. The study revealed that differences in PCB and PBDE concentrations among the species are highly dependent on age and sex but also on ecological factors such as trophic level, prey type and habitat. Of the five species studied, bottlenose dolphin and harbour porpoise showed the greatest concentrations of PCBs. Both species exceed the toxic threshold of 17μgg(-1) lipid weight (PCB Aroclor equivalent) for health effects on marine mammals, for 100% and 75% of the individuals tested, respectively. Overall, the PCB and PBDE levels observed in the NWIP toothed whales were of the same order of magnitude or lower than those reported by previous studies in areas of the NE Atlantic. However, they are often higher than those for toothed whales from the southern Atlantic and Pacific Ocean.
authors.affiliation: Littoral Environment et Sociétes (LIENSs), UMRi 7266 CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17042 La Rochelle Cedex 01, France; Coordinadora para o Estudo dos Mamiferos Mariños (CEMMA), Apdo. 15, Pontevedra 36380, Spain; Centro de Biologia Molecuar e Ambiental (CBMA)/Sociedade Portuguesa de Vida Selvagem (SPVS), Dep. de Biologia, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, Braga 4710-057, Portugal. Electronic address: paula.mendez_fernandez@univ-lr.fr.
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Méndez-Fernandez
authors.affiliation: Marine Scotland, Marine Laboratory, Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Lynda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Webster
authors.affiliation: Littoral Environment et Sociétes (LIENSs), UMRi 7266 CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17042 La Rochelle Cedex 01, France.
authors.forename: Tiphaine
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chouvelon
authors.affiliation: Littoral Environment et Sociétes (LIENSs), UMRi 7266 CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17042 La Rochelle Cedex 01, France.
authors.forename: Paco
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bustamante
authors.affiliation: Centro de Biologia Molecuar e Ambiental (CBMA)/Sociedade Portuguesa de Vida Selvagem (SPVS), Dep. de Biologia, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, Braga 4710-057, Portugal.
authors.forename: Marisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas (C.S.I.C), Eduardo Cabello 6, 36208 Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Angel F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: González
authors.affiliation: Coordinadora para o Estudo dos Mamiferos Mariños (CEMMA), Apdo. 15, Pontevedra 36380, Spain.
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: López
authors.affiliation: Marine Scotland, Marine Laboratory, Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Colin F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Moffat
authors.affiliation: Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen Main Street, Newburgh, Aberdeenshire AB41 6AA, United Kingdom; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: Graham J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Pierce
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas (C.S.I.C), Eduardo Cabello 6, 36208 Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Fiona L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Read
authors.affiliation: Marine Scotland, Marine Laboratory, Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Russell
authors.affiliation: Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de Vigo, P.O. Box 1552, Vigo 36200, Spain.
authors.forename: Maria B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Marine Mammal Research Unit, Fisheries Centre, University of British Columbia, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada.
authors.forename: Jérôme
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Spitz
authors.affiliation: Centro de Biologia Molecuar e Ambiental (CBMA)/Sociedade Portuguesa de Vida Selvagem (SPVS), Dep. de Biologia, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, Braga 4710-057, Portugal; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: José V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Vingada
authors.affiliation: Littoral Environment et Sociétes (LIENSs), UMRi 7266 CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17042 La Rochelle Cedex 01, France.
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Caurant
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001267:Atlantic Ocean; D002591:Cetacea / Q000378:metabolism*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005260:Female; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000378:metabolism; D013030:Spain; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
keywords: Bioaccumulation; Northwest Iberian Peninsula; PBDEs; PCBs; Patterns; Toothed whales