title: Lead pollution from waterfowl hunting in wetlands and rice fields in Argentina.
abstract: The pollution of wetlands by lead derived from waterfowl hunting with lead shot was investigated. We determined soil pellet density and Pb concentration in soil, water and vegetation in natural wetlands and rice fields in central-eastern Santa Fe province, Argentina. Pellet density varied greatly among hunting sites (between 5.5-141 pellets/m(2)) and pellets were present in some control sites. Soil Pb concentration in most hunting sites (approximately 10-20 mg kg(-1)) was not much higher than in control sites (~5-10 mg kg(-1)), with the exception of the site with highest pellet density, which also had a high Pb soil concentration. In water, on the other hand, Pb concentration was similar in all sites (~4-7 μg L(-1)), both control and hunting, and higher than reference values for aquatic media. Lead was also present in vegetation, including grasses and rice crops, in almost all cases. Most soil-collection sites were slightly acidic, and were frequently flooded. These results strongly suggest that metallic Pb from spent shot is oxidized and dissolved due to wetland conditions. Thus, the pollutant is readily mobilized and distributed across all wetland areas, effectively homogenizing its concentration in locations with and without hunting activities. The replacement of lead by nontoxic materials in pellets appears to be the only effective way to prevent Pb pollution in wetlands.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Ambiente (ECOSUR), Sunchales 329, 2000 Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina. Electronic address: mbopi34@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Marcelo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Romano
authors.affiliation: Global Health Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, Amenabar 1595, 1426 Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Hebe
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ferreyra
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Química, Física de Materiales, Ambiente y Energía, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, UBA, C. Universitaria, Pabellon 2, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Facultad de Agronomía, UBA, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Gisele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ferreyroa
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Química, Física de Materiales, Ambiente y Energía, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, UBA, C. Universitaria, Pabellon 2, C1428EHA, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Fernando V
authors.initials: FV
authors.lastname: Molina
authors.affiliation: Global Health Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, Amenabar 1595, 1426 Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, General Pinto 399, 7000 Tandil, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Caselli
authors.affiliation: Instituto de investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Campo Experimental Villarino, C.C. 14, S2125ZAA Zavalla, Santa Fe, Argentina.
authors.forename: Ignacio
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Barberis
authors.affiliation: Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas and Laboratorio de Ecología de Enfermedades, Instituto de Ciencias Veterinarias del Litoral, Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL - CONICET), R.P. Kreder 2805, 3080 Esperanza, Santa Fe, Argentina.
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Beldoménico
authors.affiliation: One Health Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, 1089 Veterinary Medicine Drive, VM3B, Ground Floor, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uhart
mesh_terms: D001118:Argentina; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019015:Geologic Sediments; D007854:Lead / Q000032:analysis*; D012275:Oryza; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D053833:Wetlands
chemical_list: D012989:Soil Pollutants; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D007854:Lead
keywords: Environmental pollution; Hunting; Lead; Trace metals; Wetlands