Dataset Information

Mercury concentrations in biota in the Mediterranean Sea, a compilation of 40 years of surveys.

ABSTRACT: The Mediterranean Region has a long lasting legacy of mercury mining activities and a high density of sub-marine volcanoes that has strongly contributed to its mercury budget. In the last forty years, there have been recorded increases in mercury concentrations in biota that have spurred a growing number of research activities to assess the impact of mercury pollution on human health and environment. Field investigations that quantify mercury concentrations in marine biota have led to a large amount of experimental data scattered in many peer-reviewed publications making it difficult for modelling applications and regional environmental assessments. This paper reviews existing peer-reviewed literature and datasets on mercury concentration in marine flora and fauna (Animal, Plants and Chromista Kingdoms) in the Mediterranean basin. A total of 24,465 records have been retrieved from 539 sources and included in Mercury in Mediterranean Biota (M2B). Well-defined specimens account for 24,407 observations, while a few records include generic plankton and unidentified fish species. Among all considered species, we selected Diplodus sargus, Sardina pilchardus, Thunnus thynnus and Xiphias gladius to show trends of mercury concentration against WHO and EU limits. Few notes on how M2B is intended to support the implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury by a user-driven Knowledge Hub are finally reported.

SUBMITTER: Cinnirella S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6795892 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Mercury concentrations in biota in the Mediterranean Sea, a compilation of 40 years of surveys.

Cinnirella S S Bruno D E DE Pirrone N N Horvat M M Živković I I Evers D C DC Johnson S S Sunderland E M EM

Scientific data 20191016 1

The Mediterranean Region has a long lasting legacy of mercury mining activities and a high density of sub-marine volcanoes that has strongly contributed to its mercury budget. In the last forty years, there have been recorded increases in mercury concentrations in biota that have spurred a growing number of research activities to assess the impact of mercury pollution on human health and environment. Field investigations that quantify mercury concentrations in marine biota have led to a large am ...[more]

PMID: 31619675

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Project description:AimEurope's only globally critically endangered seabird, the Balearic shearwater (Puffinus mauretanicus), is thought to have expanded its postbreeding range northwards into UK waters, though its at sea distribution there is not yet well understood. This study aims to identify environmental factors associated with the species' presence, map the probability of presence of the species across the western English Channel and southern Celtic Sea, and estimate the number of individuals in this area.LocationThe western English Channel and southern Celtic Sea.MethodsThis study analyses strip transect data collected between 2013 and 2017 from vessel-based surveys in the western English Channel and southern Celtic Sea during the Balearic shearwater's postbreeding period. Using environmental data collected directly and from remote sensors both Generalized Additive Models and the Random Forest machine learning model were used to determine shearwater presence at different locations. Abundance was estimated separately using a density multiplication approach.ResultsBoth models indicated that oceanographic features were better predictors of shearwater presence than fish abundance. Seafloor aspect, sea surface temperature, depth, salinity, and maximum current speed were the most important predictors. The estimated number of Balearic shearwaters in the prediction area ranged from 652 birds in 2017 to 6,904 birds in 2014.Main conclusionsAreas with consistently high probabilities of shearwater presence were identified at the Celtic Sea front. Our estimates suggest that the study area in southwest Britain supports between 2% and 23% of the global population of Balearic shearwaters. Based on the timing of the surveys (mainly in October), it is probable that most of the sighted shearwaters were immatures. This study provides the most complete understanding of Balearic shearwater distribution in UK waters available to date, information that will help inform any future conservation actions concerning this endangered species.

Dataset Information

Mercury concentrations in biota in the Mediterranean Sea, a compilation of 40 years of surveys.

Publications

Mercury concentrations in biota in the Mediterranean Sea, a compilation of 40 years of surveys.

Similar Datasets

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