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Potentially toxic element accumulation in badgers (Meles meles): a compositional approach
S T Mullineaux1, S H A Redpath1, N Ogle2
1School of Biological Sciences, 1-33 Chlorine Gardens, Belfast BT9 5AJ, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The Science of the Total Environment
|November 2, 2020
Summary
This study tracked potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in Eurasian badgers, revealing distinct accumulation patterns linked to diet, rainfall, and temperature. These findings help understand heavy metal pathways in terrestrial ecosystems.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Ecotoxicology
- Mammalian Ecology
Background:
- Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs), or heavy metals, pose risks to environmental and public health.
- Understanding PTE sources and pathways in terrestrial systems is challenging due to soil geochemistry.
- Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) can serve as bioindicators for PTEs in the environment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the accumulation patterns and geo-spatial distribution of PTEs in Eurasian badgers.
- To identify the environmental factors and pathways influencing PTE accumulation in badger tissues.
- To apply compositional statistical approaches for assessing PTE bioavailability.
Main Methods:
- Utilized compositional principal component analysis (PCA) on soil and badger tissue geochemical data.
- Employed generalized additive mixed models (GAMMs) to analyze temporal trends in PTE accumulation.
- Mapped geo-spatial patterns of PTEs in Northern Ireland using Tellus survey data.
Main Results:
- Distinct geo-spatial regions of PTE presence in soil and accumulation in badger tissues were identified.
- PTEs were most concentrated in liver and kidney tissues, with muscle showing depletion.
- Accumulation patterns were linked to rainfall, diet (δ¹⁵N), and temperature, indicating bioaccumulation and bioaccessibility pathways.
Conclusions:
- Compositional statistical methods effectively elucidate geo-spatial trends and mechanisms of PTE movement in terrestrial ecosystems.
- Environmental factors like rainfall and temperature significantly influence PTE bioavailability and accumulation in badgers.
- This approach can be a valuable tool for assessing PTE bioavailability in environmental health surveys.
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