title: The Manx shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) as a candidate sentinel of Atlantic Ocean health.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Seabirds have been historically used to monitor environmental contamination. The aim of the present study was to test the suitability of a species belonging to the Procellariiformes group, the Manx shearwater, Puffinus puffinus, as a sentinel of environmental health, by determining contaminant levels (trace metals and organochlorine compounds) from carcass tissues and by isolating Vibrio spp. and Aeromonas spp. from live specimens. To this end, 35 Puffinus puffinus carcasses wrecked on the north-central coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and two carcasses recovered in Aracruz, on the coast of the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil, were sampled, and fragments of muscle and hepatic tissues were collected for contaminant analyses. Swabs from eleven birds found alive at the north-central coast of Rio de Janeiro were collected for isolation of the aforementioned bacteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  THE AVERAGE CONCENTRATION IN DRY WEIGHT (DW) OF THE TRACE METALS WERE: mercury 7.19 mg kg(-1)(liver) and 1.23 mg kg(-1) (muscle); selenium 34.66 mg kg(-1) (liver) and 7.98 mg kg(-1) (muscle); cadmium 22.33 mg kg(-1) (liver) and 1.11 mg kg(-1) (muscle); and lead, 0.1 mg kg(--1) (liver) and 0.16 mg kg(-1) (muscle). Organochlorine compounds were detected in all specimens, and hexachlorbiphenyls, heptachlorbiphenyls and DDTs presented the highest levels. Regarding microbiological contamination, bacteria from the Vibrio genus were isolated from 91% of the analyzed specimens. Vibrio harveyi was the predominant species. Bacteria from the Aeromonas genus were isolated from 18% of the specimens. Aeromonas sobria was the only identified species.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results indicate that Puffinus puffinus seems to be a competent ocean health sentinel. Therefore, the monitoring of contaminant levels and the isolation of public health interest bacteria should proceed in order to consolidate this species importance as a sentinel.
authors.affiliation: Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde Pública e Meio Ambiente, ENSP/Fiocruz, Rua Leopoldo Bulhões, 1480, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21041-210, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Maíra Duarte
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Cardoso
authors.affiliation: Systems Ecology, Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology (ZMT), Fahrenheitstrasse 6, 28359 Bremen, Germany.
authors.forename: Jailson Fulgencio
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: de Moura
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Endemias Samuel Pessoa - DENSP & Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Marinhos da Região dos Lagos - GEMM-Lagos, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública /FICORUZ, Rua Leopoldo Bulhões, 1.480, 6° andar, Sala 611, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21041-210, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Davi C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Tavares
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Química, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Rua Marquês de São Vicente, 225, Gávea, Rio de Janeiro 22453-900, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Rodrigo A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.affiliation: Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto Oceanográfico, Praça do Oceanográfico 191, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-120, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Fernanda I
authors.initials: FI
authors.lastname: Colabuono
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/FIOCRUZ, Laboratório de Referência Nacional de Enteroinfecções Bacterianas, Av. Brasil, 4365, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21040-360, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Emily M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Roges
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/FIOCRUZ, Laboratório de Referência Nacional de Enteroinfecções Bacterianas, Av. Brasil, 4365, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21040-360, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Roberta Laine
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/FIOCRUZ, Laboratório de Referência Nacional de Enteroinfecções Bacterianas, Av. Brasil, 4365, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21040-360, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Dalia Dos Prazeres
authors.initials: Ddos P
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto Oceanográfico, Praça do Oceanográfico 191, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-120, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Rosalinda C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Montone
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Endemias Samuel Pessoa - DENSP & Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Marinhos da Região dos Lagos - GEMM-Lagos, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública /FICORUZ, Rua Leopoldo Bulhões, 1.480, 6° andar, Sala 611, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro 21041-210, RJ, Brasil.
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Siciliano
keywords: Aeromonas; Brazil; Metal; Organochlorines; Puffinus puffinus; Sentinel; Vibrio