Monitoring Chemical Environmental Hazards Through Wildlife Assessment: A Review Within the "One Health" Approach

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Toxicology
• Food Safety

Background:

• Wildlife serve as sentinels for environmental pollution, offering insights into human health risks under the One Health approach.
• Limited knowledge exists on legacy and emerging contaminants in wildlife and their potential transfer to humans through the food chain.
• Monitoring terrestrial wildlife, especially game species, is vital for safeguarding game meat as a protein source.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review current evidence on chemical contaminant levels in terrestrial wildlife from a One Health perspective.
• To identify knowledge gaps, particularly concerning game meat contamination and emerging pollutants.
• To emphasize the need for systematic monitoring to improve risk assessment and food safety.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of studies on chemical contaminants in terrestrial wildlife.
• Analysis of contaminant types (metals, pesticides, microplastics, mycotoxins) and their sources.
• Evaluation of the application of the One Health framework in contaminant studies.

Main Results:

• Few studies explicitly use the One Health framework or focus on game meat contamination.
• Contaminants originate from diverse sources (e.g., ammunition, agriculture, industry), but local environmental factors complicate comparisons.
• Emerging pollutants are underrepresented in the current literature.

Conclusions:

• Systematic monitoring of terrestrial wildlife for contaminants, especially emerging ones, is essential.
• Improved understanding of contaminant transfer is needed to protect food safety and public health.
• Addressing knowledge gaps will enhance risk assessment and the One Health approach to environmental contamination.