title: Seasonal variation in accumulation of persistent organic pollutants in an Arctic marine benthic food web.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate seasonal variation in persistent organic pollutant (POP) concentrations, as well as food-web biomagnification, in an Arctic, benthic marine community. Macrozoobenthos, demersal fish and common eiders were collected both inside and outside of Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, during May, July and October 2007. The samples were analysed for a selection of legacy chlorinated POPs. Overall, low levels of POPs were measured in all samples. Although POP levels and accumulation patterns showed some seasonal variation, the magnitude and direction of change was not consistent among species. Overall, seasonality in bioaccumulation in benthic biota was less pronounced than in the pelagic system in Kongsfjorden. In addition, the results indicate that δ(15)N is not a good predictor for POP-levels in benthic food chains. Other factors, such as feeding strategy (omnivory, necrophagy versus herbivory), degree of contact with the sediment, and a high dependence on particulate organic matter (POM), with low POP-levels and high δ(15)N-values (due to bacterial isotope enrichment), seem to govern the uptake of the different POPs and result in loads deviating from what would be expected consulting the trophic position alone.
authors.affiliation: Akvaplan-niva. Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway; University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway. Electronic address: anita.evenset@akvaplan.niva.no.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Evenset
authors.affiliation: University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: I G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Hallanger
authors.affiliation: Akvaplan-niva. Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway; Institute for Hydrobiology and Fisheries Research, University of Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tessmann
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Warner
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ruus
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Oslo, Norway; Department of Biosciences, P.O. Box 1066, Blindern 0316, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Borgå
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Gabrielsen
authors.affiliation: Akvaplan-niva. Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Christensen
authors.affiliation: Akvaplan-niva. Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway; University Centre in Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Norway.
authors.forename: P E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Renaud
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001110:Arctic Regions; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism; D020387:Food Chain; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D012621:Seasons; D013538:Svalbard; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015048:Zooplankton / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
keywords: Benthos; Biomagnification; Kongsfjorden; POPs; Svalbard