Mercury biomagnification in the food chain of a piscivorous turtle species (Testudines: Chelidae: Chelus fimbriata) in the Central Amazon, Brazil

• Published in: Ecotoxicology (London) Vol. 33; no. 4-5; pp. 425 - 439
• Main Authors: Cunha, Fábio Andrew G., Forsberg, Bruce R., Vogt, Richard C., Domingos, Fabíola X. V., Marshall, Bruce G., Brito, Brendson C., de Sousa, Otávio P., Kasper, Daniele, Santos, Ana Laura P., Ândrade, Marcelo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.07.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Algae; Aquatic habitats; Aquatic plants; Bioaccumulation; Biological magnification; Carapace; Carbon 13; Carnivores; Carnivorous animals; Chelus fimbriata; Collections; Contamination; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; Ecotoxicology; Energy resources; Energy sources; Environment; Environmental Management; Food chains; Food contamination; Food plants; Food sources; Geographical distribution; Habitats; Heavy metals; Isotopes; Mercury; Mercury (metal); Muscles; Natural history; Reptiles & amphibians; Stable isotopes; Testudines; Trophic levels; Turtles; Brazil; Turtles; Amazonian; Mercury; Stable isotopes; Food chain; Biomagnification
• ISSN: 0963-9292; 1573-3017; 1573-3017
• DOI: 10.1007/s10646-024-02756-w

Due to their natural history and ecological attributes, turtles are excellent organisms for studies of heavy metal contamination. Turtles have a large geographical distribution, occupy different aquatic habitats, and occupy various trophic levels. The present study investigated mercury bioaccumulation in the carnivorous chelonian Chelus fimbriata (Matamata turtle) and Hg biomagnification in relation to its aquatic food chain in the middle Rio Negro, AM-Brazil. Tissue samples of muscle, carapace and claws were collected from 26  C. fimbriata individuals, as well as collections of autotrophic energy sources found in the turtle’s aquatic habitat area. The samples were collected in February-March/2014 and analyzed for THg concentrations and carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) stable isotopes. The highest THg levels were found in claws (3780 ng.g −1 ), carapace (3622 ng.g −1 ) and muscle (403 ng.g −1 ), which were found to be significantly different [F(2.73) = 49.02 p  < 0.01]. However, THg concentrations in muscle tissue were below the consumption threshold indicated by the WHO and Brazilian Health Ministry. The average δ 13 C and δ 15 N values in Matamata samples were −31.7‰ and 11.9‰, respectively. The principal energy source sustaining the food chain of C. fimbriata was found to be terrestrial shrubs, with smaller contributions from emergent aquatic herbaceous plants and algae, while δ 15 N values showed its trophic position to be two levels above the autotrophic energy sources. There was a positive correlation between THg and turtle size, while a significant relationship was found between THg and δ 15 N, showing strong biomagnification in the food chain of C. fimbriata : y = 0.21x + 0.46; r 2  = 0.45; p  < 0.001, for which the slope presented a value of 0.21.