Mercury distribution and bioaccumulation up the soil-plant-grasshopper-spider food chain in Huludao City, China

• Published in: Journal of environmental sciences (China) Vol. 22; no. 8; pp. 1179 - 1183
• Main Authors: Zhang, Zhongsheng, Wang, Qichao, Zheng, Dongmei, Zheng, Na, Lu, Xianguo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.08.2010; Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Environment,Institute of Northeast Geography and Agroecology,Chinese Academy of Science,Changchun 130012,China; Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing 100049,China%Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Environment,Institute of Northeast Geography and Agroecology,Chinese Academy of Science,Changchun 130012,China%Key Laboratory of Eco-remediation of Contaminated Environment and Resource Reuse,Shenyang University,Shenyang 110044,China
• Subjects: Animals; Araneae; Bioaccumulation; China; Environmental Monitoring; Food Chain; grasshopper; Grasshoppers; Grasshoppers - chemistry; Grasshoppers - metabolism; Locusta migratoria manilensi; Mercury; Mercury - chemistry; Mercury - metabolism; plant; Plants (organisms); Plants - chemistry; Plants - metabolism; soil; Soil - chemistry; Soil Pollutants - chemistry; Soil Pollutants - metabolism; spider; Spiders; Spiders - chemistry; Spiders - metabolism; Zinc; 中华蚱蜢; 植物叶片; 汞分布; 葫芦岛市; 食物链; China, People's Rep; food chain; mercury; plant; grasshopper; soil; bioaccumulation; spider
• ISSN: 1001-0742; 1878-7320
• DOI: 10.1016/S1001-0742(09)60235-7

The purpose of this study is to investigate total mercury （THg） distribution and its bioaccumulation up the soil-plant-grasshopperspider in the Huludao City, which is polluted seriously by chlor-alkali and zinc smelting industry in Northeast of China. Results indicated that average THg concentrations in soil, plant leaves, grasshopper Locusta migratoria manilensis and Acrida chinensis, and spider were 0.151, 0.119, 0.167 and 0.134 mg/kg, respectively. THg spatial distribution suggested that most of mercury came from the chlor-alkali plant and the two zinc smelteries. The highest mercury concentration was found in the wings among different grasshoppers’ organs. Although spiders are the predatory, THg concentrations in their bodies were not high, and only on the same level as in grasshoppers, which might be due to spiders’ special living habits. In the light of the mercury transportation at every stage of the soil-plant-grasshopper-spider food chain, the bioaccumulation factors were 0.03, 0.79–1.11 and 0.80–1.13 respectively. It suggested that mercury biomagnification up terrestrial food chains was not so large and obvious as it was in the aquatic food chain.