Environmental Contaminant Reports

Abstracts or excerpts of several investigations are listed below.  Most reports are available as Portable Document Format (PDF) files and may be downloaded from this site (PDF reader required; e.g., Adobe Acrobat Reader).  USFWS Special Project Reports included in the list below have been peer-reviewed by USFWS environmental contaminant specialists, scientists from other federal agencies, state biologists, or scientists from non-governmental organizations..  

USFWS reports prepared after October 1, 2002, have been peer-reviewed and certified in accordance with the provisions of the Information Quality Act (Public Law 106-554, Section 515)

Scroll down through this page to see report abstracts, or select a title from the list below to move directly to the abstract.

EC Report List

Abstract: In July 2006, thirty-six brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) were collected from tributaries of two Maine rivers and used as surrogates for assessing potential contaminant exposure in Atlantic salmon parr.  Eighteen trout were collected from two reaches in Cove Brook, a tributary of the Penobscot River, and 18 fish were collected from two tributaries of the Sheepscot River - Finn Brook and Weaver Brook.  Brook trout were analyzed as whole-body samples (minus livers and a gill portion) for organochlorine compounds and trace elements. Brook trout in the study averaged 161 mm in length and 25 grams in weight.  These average brook trout length and weight are similar to the size of Atlantic salmon parr.  There was no significant difference in trout weights or lengths between the two DPS watersheds.  Ages of trout in the collections ranged from I+ to III+.  These brook trout ages would mimic the residence time of salmon parr in the two watersheds.  Lipid content in brook trout averaged 3% with a range of 0.60 to 6.27 %.  As with size and age, brook trout lipid content would be similar to Atlantic salmon parr.  Except for low levels of p,p’-DDE detected in two of 36 fish - one from Cove Brook (0.004 µg/g wet weight) and one from Finn Brook (0.015 µg/g) - levels of 21 other organochlorine compounds, including Total PCB, were below analytical detection limits (< 0.002 µg/g to < 0.010 µg/g).  Several trace elements were detected in whole-body brook trout samples.  Mercury concentrations ranged from non-detect to 0.11 µg/g wet weight, well below the suggested tissue threshold-effect level of 0.20 µg/g.  Similarly, arsenic, selenium, and zinc levels in brook trout were not elevated compared to concentrations reported in other trout studies or in other species used in Maine, regional, and national biomonitoring programs.  Copper concentrations in brook trout were higher than levels reported in other species used in other biomonitoring programs.  With the exception of copper, trace elements levels in brook trout generally appeared to be lower concentrations than white suckers collected in the same watersheds.  Beryllium, molybdenum, and vanadium concentrations were below detection in all samples.

Download PDF File [665 KB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 43 pp.
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Abstract: During the 2004 and 2005 breeding seasons, a total of 50 common tern (Sterna hirundo) eggs and 42 chicks were collected from three Maine offshore islands where chick developmental abnormalities had been previously reported, and from two nearby reference islands.  Samples were analyzed individually for organochlorine compounds and trace elements.  Three 3-egg composite samples from three islands (two target, one reference) were also analyzed for dioxin, furan, and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) congeners.  Dioxin toxic equivalents (TCDD-TEQ) in composite egg samples ranged from 17 to 65 pg/g.  Congener PCB #77 was the dominant contributor to the TCDD-TEQ.  Mean Total PCB concentrations in eggs and chicks were 0.36 ± 0.19 µg/g and 0.62 ± 0.46 µg/g, respectively.  DDE, a metabolite of the pesticide DDT, was detected in all samples at concentrations less than 0.10 µg/g.  Other organochlorine compounds (e.g., chlordane compounds, cyclodiene pesticides, hexachlorcyclohexanes, etc.) were also detected in eggs and chicks at even lower concentrations (< 0.005 µg/g).  Mean mercury concentrations in eggs and chicks were 0.11 ± 0.03 µg/g and 0.16 ± 0.07 µg/g, respectively.  Except for a few anomalous elevated detections, concentrations of 18 other trace elements were within previously reported ranges, low, sporadically detected, or below detection limits. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for various contaminants among islands and by sample type.  However, organochlorine compound and trace element concentrations in eggs and chicks were below levels associated with embryotoxicity or developmental abnormalities. 

Download PDF File [517 KB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 93 pp.
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Abstract:  Six non-viable common tern (Sterna hirundo) and three roseate tern (Sterna dougallii) eggs were collected from Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in Massachusetts and Seal Island NWR in Maine.  Eggs were formed into three 3-egg species-specific composites – one common tern sample and one roseate tern sample from Monomoy NWR, and one common tern sample from Seal Island NWR.  All composite samples were analyzed for 26 organochlorine compounds and 19 trace elements.  At Monomoy NWR, Total Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) concentrations in common tern and roseate tern composite egg samples were 0.67 and 1.13 µg/g, fresh wet weight, respectively.  Total PCB in the common tern composite egg sample from Seal Island NWR was 0.34 µg/g.  DDE, a metabolite of the pesticide DDT, was found at 0.03 µg/g in both the common and roseate tern samples from Monomoy NWR, and at 0.05 µg/g in the common tern sample from Seal Island NWR.  Concentrations of Total PCB and DDE were below suggested toxic effect threshold levels.  Twenty-four other organochlorine compounds were below detection limits or in the low ng/g (ppb) range.  Mercury was detected at 0.14 µg/g and 0.11 µg/g in roseate tern and common tern egg samples from Monomoy NWR, respectively.  At Seal Island NWR, the common tern egg composite sample had a mercury concentration of 0.09 µg/g.  Concentrations in all three samples were well below a suggested avian reproductive effect threshold for mercury (0.80 µg/g).  Of the eighteen other trace elements in the analytical scan, ten were below detection in all samples.  Although detected in all samples, levels of arsenic, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, selenium, strontium, and zinc were not elevated compared to other regional tern studies and to suggested threshold effect levels.   

Download PDF File [2.2 MB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 27 pp.
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Abstract:  White suckers (Catostomus commersoni) were collected for tissue residue analyses between 2003 and 2006 from the West Branch of the Sheepscot River, Ducktrap River, Cove Brook, Narraguagus River, Pleasant River, Machias River, East Machias River, and Dennys River.  Ninety whole-body white suckers from 27 locations in the eight rivers were separated into 47 samples (22 composites and 25 individuals) and analyzed for organochlorine compounds and trace elements in a screening-level contaminant survey.  Of 22 organochlorine compounds included in the analytical scan only two were detected with any regularity - Total PCBs and p,p'-DDE.  Total polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) was detected in all sucker samples from the Dennys River (mean 0.041 µg/g), two fish from the Pleasant River (0.007 µg/g, 0.018 µg/g), and four composite samples from the East Machias River (mean 0.005 µg/g).  Total PCBs in suckers from the DPS rivers were similar to levels reported in regional and national biomonitoring programs.  Although Total PCB was detected in 25 samples, and suckers from the Dennys River had six-fold higher Total PCB concentrations than fish from two other DPS rivers, Total PCB concentrations in DPS river white suckers did not exceed suggested biological effect levels.  DDE, a metabolite of the insecticide DDT, was found in 12 of 28 samples (median 0.003 µg/g) from the DPS rivers at levels three to fifteen times lower than levels reported in regional and national biomonitoring programs, and two orders of magnitude below a suggested DDT tissue threshold-effect level of 0.60 µg/g.      

The mean mercury concentration for all white sucker samples (0.22 µg/g) was at the suggested tissue effect threshold level (0.20 µg/g).  Mercury is frequently found in biota at elevated levels in New England.  Relative to higher trophic level fish species such as smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui), elevated levels of mercury (> 0.50 to 1.00 µg/g) are not commonly found in white suckers in New England.  Among the DPS rivers, the highest mercury levels were found in white suckers from the Machias River (0.69 µg/g) and to a lesser extent in the West Branch of the Sheepscot River (mean 0.35 µg/g).  In DPS river white suckers, concentrations of 18 other trace elements appeared lower or similar to median values reported in Maine, regional, or national biomonitoring programs.

Download PDF File [210 KB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 44 pp.
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Abstract: We conducted a pilot study to screen mercury (Hg) levels in Gulf of Maine seabirds in an effort to determine which species are most at risk, are the most appropriate bioindicators, and to refine sampling methods. From 13 Gulf of Maine islands, we evaluated Hg levels in the eggs or blood of seven species of seabirds: razorbill (Alca torda), black guillemot (Cepphus grille), Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica), double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus), common eider (Somateria mollissima), Leach’s storm-petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa), and common tern (Sterna hirundo). We found: (1) black guillemots (egg mean = 0.66 ppm; juvenile blood mean = 0.11) and double-crested cormorants (egg mean = 0.28; juvenile blood mean = 0.18) had the highest Hg levels; (2) a suggestive relationship between cormorant levels and proximity to river outflows, but not statistically significant (r² 0.17); (3) no significant relationship between cormorant Hg levels and proximity to the mainland (r² 0.007); (4) low cormorant intra-clutch and island variation; and (5) a significant relationship between within cormorant clutch mean egg Hg levels and standard deviation (linear, r²  = 0.67; 2nd degree polynomial, r² = 0.99). These results indicate that black guillemots, double-crested cormorants, and Leach’s storm-petrels are effective bioindicators of Hg and other containments in the marine environment.

Download PDF File [787 KB]:  Report (Text, figures, tables) 18 pp.
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Abstract: On July 19, 2003 an addled osprey (Pandion haliaetus) egg was collected from a nest at the northern end of Upper Richardson Lake in western Maine.  The egg was analyzed by the USFWS for organochlorine compounds and trace elements.  Dioxins, furans, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organochlorine compounds were not detected at elevated concentrations.  Only one dioxin congener (2,3,7,8 tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin) was detected at a concentration of 1 pg/g, fresh wet weight.  Sixteen other dioxin and furan congeners were not detectable. Several dioxin-like PCBs occurred in the egg to produce a dioxin toxic equivalent (TCDD-TEQ) concentration of 29 pg/g.  TCDD-TEQ concentration in the egg was well below a suggested reproductive effect level for osprey (≥ 136 pg/g).  Total PCB and p,p'-DDE concentrations were 1.15 and 0.35 ug/g, respectively.  Both concentrations were below apparent toxic effect levels.  Twenty-four other organochlorine compounds were non-detectable or in the low ng/g.  Mercury was detected at 0.34 ug/g.  The mercury level in the Upper Richardson Lake osprey egg was elevated compared to osprey egg studies in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, but below suggested reproductive effect thresholds.

Download PDF File [224 KB]: Report (Text, figure, and tables) 14 pp.
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Abstract:  Maine's coastal islands and beaches provide important nesting habitat for piping plover (Charadrius melodus), least tern (Sterna antillarum), common tern (Sterna hirundo), Arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea), Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica), black guillemot (Cepphus grylle), and common eider (Somateria mollissima).  Little is known, however, about mercury exposure in bird species using coastal beaches and islands.  To address this data gap, we determined mercury content in nonviable and abandoned bird eggs collected between 1993 and 2004 from ten locations along the Maine coast.  Eighty-two eggs from seven species were collected.  Fifty eggs were analyzed individually for mercury and 32 eggs were formed into six species-specific composites prior to analysis.  Mercury concentrations in egg samples ranged from 0.07 ug/g to 0.33 ug/g, fresh wet weight.  Individual or mean concentrations among species were black guillemot 0.31 ug/g, Atlantic puffin 0.17 ug/g, piping plover 0.17 ug/g, common eider 0.12 ug/g, least tern 0.11 ug/g, common tern 0.11 ug/g and Arctic tern 0.10 ug/g.  These mercury concentrations in bird eggs are not elevated compared to suggested embryotoxic thresholds (0.80 ug/g) or ecological effect screening benchmarks (0.50 ug/g).  Although elevated mercury levels were not detected in egg samples, additional monitoring is recommended to profile temporal and spatial mercury exposure patterns in birds nesting along the Maine coast.   

Download PDF File [112KB]: Report (Text, figure, and tables) 14 pp.
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Abstract:  In 1993 a screening-level contaminant survey was conducted on Sunkhaze Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.  Elevated levels of  Total PCBs were found in Baker Brook sediment samples (0.78 mg/kg dw) and high chromium levels (> 10 ug/g ww) were found in chain pickerel (Esox niger) and yellow perch (Perca flavescens) samples from Sunkhaze Stream.  In 2001, a follow-up contaminant survey was conducted using additional locations along these watercourses to validate the earlier results and to determine the extent of contamination in fish and sediments.  Eighteen wholebody composite fish samples and five sediment samples were collected in 2001.  Composite samples of wholebody chain pickerel and yellow perch were collected from five stations on Sunkhaze Stream.  In Baker Brook, sediments samples were collected from five locations.  Eight composite samples of wholebody brown bullhead (Ameriurus nebulosus) were also collected from four Baker Brook sites co-located with sediment collection locations.  Bullheads were not available at the fifth sediment collection site.  Fish and sediment samples were analyzed for organochlorine compounds and inorganic elements.  The contaminants of concern in the 1993 collections (i.e., PCBs in sediment and chromium in fish tissue), were not found at elevated levels in the 2001 collections.  In 2001, fish tissue samples in Sunkhaze Stream and Baker Brook did not contain detectable levels of Total PCB or chromium.  No other organochlorine compound or inorganic elements were found at elevated concentrations in fish tissue during the follow-up study.  In Baker Brook, Total PCB was not detected in the five sediment samples.  Chromium was detected in Baker Brook sediments at low levels, but the element was not detected in any fish samples from the brook.  An examination of sediment data suggests that the former Milford Municipal Landfill, closed since 1995, may be influencing Baker Brook.  Of the 21 inorganic elements in the analytical scan, ten elements exhibited their highest concentrations in the Baker Brook sediment collection site approximately one-half mile downstream of the former landfill - Baker 4.  Of the ten elements, however, only cadmium (1.18 mg/kg dw) occurred at an elevated concentration, and at a level only slightly above the threshold effect concentration (TEC; cadmium TEC is 0.99 mg/kg).  The only other element to occur above the respective sediment TEC was arsenic (TEC 9.79 mg/kg), which was found at 10.2 mg/kg at location Baker 5 at the confluence of Baker Brook and Sunkhaze Stream.

Download PDF File [564KB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 41 pp.
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Abstract:  During annual censuses, nonviable tern and plover eggs are regularly encountered in active, abandoned, or  flooded nests.  Between May and July 2003, USFWS personnel and cooperators opportunistically collected unhatched eggs from piping plover, least tern, and common tern nests from seven locations along the Maine coast.  Thirty-two nonviable and abandoned eggs were collected.  Piping plover (Charadrius melodus) eggs (n=4) were collected from Laudholm Beach and Parsons Beach .  Least tern (Sterna antillarum) eggs (n=16) were collected from Crescent Surf Beach and  Higgins Beach.  Common tern (Sterna hirundo) eggs (n=12) were collected from Stratton Island, Pond Island, and Petit Manan Island.  Common tern and least tern eggs were formed into five species-specific, location-specific composite samples.  Piping plover eggs were combined into one additional sample.  Each composite sample was analyzed for organochlorine (OC) compounds and inorganic elements.  Only five OC compounds were found in egg composite samples - dieldrin, hexachlorobenzene (HCB), total polychlorinated biphenyl (Total PCB), p,p'-DDE, and trans-nonachlor.  The highest HCB level (0.007 ug/g, fww) was found in the least tern composite sample from Higgins Beach .  A common tern composite sample from Pond Island had the highest Total PCB concentration (0.764 ug/g), while DDE was highest in the piping plover composite sample from Laudholm and Parsons Beaches (0.097 ug/g).  Organochlorine compound concentrations in eggs were not highly elevated and did not exceed individual ecological effect benchmarks.  For inorganics, copper, iron, mercury, manganese, magnesium, selenium, strontium, and zinc were detected in all six samples.  The highest concentrations of mercury (0.17 ug/g), strontium (4.99 ug/g), and zinc (12.7 ug/g) were detected in the piping plover composite egg sample.  The highest level of selenium (0.70 ug/g) was found in the common tern composite sample from Petit Manan Island .  Inorganic element concentrations were not highly elevated compared to ecological effect benchmarks. Additional monitoring was recommended to quantify potential temporal and spatial contaminant trends in birds nesting along the Maine coast.    

Download PDF File [1MB]: Report (Text, figures, tables) 34 pp.
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16.  Factors Affecting Food Chain Transfer of Mercury in the Vicinity of the Nyanza Site, Sudbury River, Massachusetts.  2003.  Haines T.A., T.W. May, R.T. Finlayson and S.E. Mierzykowski.  Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 86(3):211-232.

Abstract: The influence of the Nyanza Chemical Waste Dump Superfund Site on the Sudbury River, Massachusetts, was assessed by analysis of sediment, fish prey organisms, and predator fish from four locations in the river system. Whitehall Reservoir is an impoundment upstream of the site, and Reservoir #2 is an impoundment downstream of the site. Cedar Street is a flowing reach upstream of the site, and Sherman Bridge is a flowing reach downstream of the site. Collections of material for analysis were made three times, in May, July, and October. Sediment was analyzed for acid-volatile sulfide (AVS), simultaneously-extracted (SEM) metals (As, Cd, Cr, Hg, Pb, Sb, Zn), and total recoverable Hg. The dominant predatory fish species collected at all sites, largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), was analyzed for the same suite of metals as sediment. Analysis of stomach contents of bass identified small fish (yellow perch Perca flavescens, bluegill Lepomis macrochirus, and pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus), crayfish, and dragonfly larvae as the dominant prey organisms. Samples of the prey were collected from the same locations and at the same times as predator fish, and were analyzed for total and methyl mercury. Results of AVS and SEM analyses indicated that sediments were not toxic to aquatic invertebrates at any site. The SEM concentrations of As, Cd, and Cr were significantly higher at Reservoir #2 than at the reference sites, and SEM As and Cd were significantly higher at Sherman Bridge than at Cedar St. Sediment total Hg was elevated only at Reservoir #2. Hg was higher at site-influenced locations in all fish species except brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus). Cd was higher in bluegill, black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus), and brown bullhead, and Cr was higher in largemouth bass fillet samples but not in whole-body samples. There were no seasonal differences in sediment or prey organism metals, but some metals in some fish species did vary over time in an inconsistent manner. Predator fish Hg concentration was significantly linearly related to weighted prey organism methyl Hg concentration. Largemouth bass Hg was significantly lower at Reservoir #2 in our study than in previous investigations in 1989 and 1990. High concentrations of inorganic Hg remain in river sediment as a result of operation of the Nyanza site, and fish Hg concentrations in river reaches downstream of the site are elevated compared to upstream reference sites. However, the differences are relatively small and Hg concentrations in largemouth bass from the site-influenced locations are no higher than those from some other, nearby uncontaminated sites. We hypothesize that this results from burial of contaminated sediment with cleaner material, which reduces bioavailability of contaminants and possibly reduces methylation of mercury.

Reprints of the paper may be ordered from Kluwer Academic Publishers through the Environmental Monitoring and Assessment web site.
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15.  Organochlorine Compounds and Mercury in Bald Eagle Eggs, Penobscot River, Maine.  2002.  Mierzykowski S.E. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY02-MEFO-1-EC.  Maine Field Office.  Old Town, ME.

Abstract:  Four bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) eggs from three nests on the Penobscot River, Maine, were analyzed for organochlorine contaminants and mercury. Eggs were collected in June 2000 within two weeks of nest abandonment. Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin toxic equivalents (TEQs) based on World Health Organization toxic equivalency factors for birds were determined for each egg. TEQs determined solely from polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and dibenzofurans (TEQ _PCDD/Fs) in the four eggs ranged from 15 to 59 pg/g, fresh wet weight (mean 35 pg/g, fww), while Total TEQs _{(PCDD/Fs + planar PCBs)} ranged from 223 to 570 pg/g, fww (mean 385 pg/g, fww). The percent of total TEQs derived from PCDD/Fs averaged approximately 8%. PCB# 126 was the greatest contributor to the Total TEQ. The mean concentrations of total PCBs and p,p’-DDE in eggs were 9.05 ug/g, fww, and 1.53 ug/g, fww, respectively. Compared to previous Maine eagle egg studies, DDE levels were not markedly elevated in these 4 eggs. TEQ and total PCB levels in Maine eggs, however, continue to exceed No Effect Levels suggested for bald eagles. Mercury concentrations in eggs ranged from 0.12 ug/g to 0.25 ug/g, fww (mean 0.17 ug/g, fww). Mercury in these 4 eggs occurred at lower concentrations than previous Maine eagle egg studies and below suggested effects thresholds. 

Download PDF file [68KB]:  Report (Text, Figures, Tables) 14 pp.
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14.  Environmental Contaminants in Arctic Tern Eggs from Petit Manan Island, Petit Manan National Wildlife Refuge, Milbridge, Maine.  2001.  Mierzykowski S.E., J.L. Megyesi and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY96-MEFO-6-EC.  Maine Field Office. Old Town, ME. 40 pp.

Abstract:  In 1993, eleven Arctic tern Sterna paradisea eggs were collected from 3 tern nesting areas on Petit Manan Island, Steuben, Washington County, Maine.  Egg contents were analyzed for organochlorine pesticides and trace elements.  Of 19 organochlorine pesticides included in the analytical scan, only hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and DDE were found in tern eggs.  HCB (mean 0.015 ug/g, fresh wet weight (fww); range: nondetect - 0.022 ug/g) and DDE (mean 0.039 ug/g, fww; range: 0.018 - 0.061 ug/g) were not elevated compared to other tern studies and to avian effect threshold concentrations.  Trace element concentrations were determined in five eggs.  Ten of 19 trace elements were detected in the tern eggs.  The trace elements and their mean concentrations (fresh wet weight) in Arctic tern eggs were arsenic (0.18 ug/g), chromium (0.11 ug/g), copper (0.76 ug/g), iron (28.31 ug/g), magnesium (106.68 ug/g), manganese (0.49 ug/g), mercury (0.10 ug/g), selenium 1.89 (ug/g), strontium (2.14 ug/g), and zinc (17.46 ug/g).  Trace element concentrations in Arctic tern eggs from Petit Manan Island were not elevated compared to other tern studies.  One egg, however, had a selenium concentration (2.93 ug/g) that was slightly less than the suggested threshold level for reproductive impairment (3.00 ug/g).         

Download PDF file [676]:  Report (Text, Figure, Tables) 40 pp.
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13.  Total Mercury and Methyl Mercury in Freshwater Mussels Elliptio complanata from the Sudbury River watershed, Massachusetts.  2001.  Mierzykowski S.E. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY98-MEFO-2-EC.  Maine Field Office.  Old Town, ME. 51 pp.

Abstract:  Freshwater mussels (Elliptio complanata) were collected from site-impacted and reference impoundments and riverine locations in the Sudbury River watershed to determine if mercury concentrations were higher near a riverside hazardous waste site. Twenty-eight mussel tissue samples were analyzed for total and methyl mercury.  The mean total mercury concentration in mussel tissue was significantly higher (p<0.05) in the reference impoundment (0.14 ug/g, wet weight; Whitehall Reservoir) than in the site-impacted reservoir (0.08 ug/g; Reservoir #2).  Total mercury concentrations in mussel tissue were not significantly different in the two riverine locations.   Similarly,  methyl mercury concentrations in mussel tissue were not significantly different between riverine locations or between reservoir locations.    

Download PDF file [439KB]:  Report (Text, Figures, Tables) 51 pp.
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12.  Analysis of Tissue Cadmium Concentrations in New England Moose.  2000.  Gustafson K.A., K.M. Bontaites, and A. Major.  Alces 36:35-40.

As part of a larger, New England moose study, USFWS Maine Field Office and  Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife personnel collected liver samples from hunter-killed moose Alces alces during the 1993 hunting season.  Twenty-one liver tissue samples from adult bull moose (age 4.5+) killed in Maine were analyzed for cadmium  The geometric mean cadmium concentration of these samples was 4.22 ug/g, wet weight, with a range of 2.57 ug/g to 7.33 ug/g.  The cadmium levels in Maine moose were not significantly different (p=0.7175, ANOVA) from samples collected the same year in Vermont or New Hampshire.  

Reprints of the paper may be ordered from the Alces Home Page or from the Lakehead University Bookstore, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, P7B 5E1.
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11.  Screening Level Contaminant Survey of the Sunkhaze Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Milford, Maine. 2000. Mierzykowski S.E., A.R. Major and K.C. Carr.  USFWS. Special Project Report FY97-MEFO-4-EC.  Maine Field Office. Old Town, Maine. 73 pp.

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10.  Trace Element Exposure in Benthic Invertebrates from Grove Pond, Plow Shop Pond, and Nonacoicus Brook, Ayer, Massachusetts. 2000.  Mierzykowski S.E. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY00-MEFO-1-EC.  Maine Field Office.  Old Town, ME. 78 pp.

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9.  Environmental Contaminants in Golden Shiners from Picnic Pond, U.S. Naval Air Station, Brunswick, Maine.  1999.  Mierzykowski S.E. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY97-MEFO-2-EC.  Maine Field Office.  Old Town, ME. 25 pp.

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8.  Organochlorine Contaminants and Bald Eagles Haliaeetus leucocephalus in Maine: Investigations at Three Ecological Scales.  1998.  Matz A.C.  Ph.D. Dissertation.  University of Maine.  Orono, ME.

Abstract:  Maine bald eagles have relatively high organochlorine contaminant concentrations, in spite of few industrial sources within the state.  I investigated possible causes or sources at the ecosystem level, and effects on the population and individuals.  Biomagnification was investigated by comparing trophic status and contaminant concentrations.  There was no significant differences between nestling whole blood DDE concentrations from freshwater and marine habitats (which are trophically elevated compared to freshwater), but total PCBs were higher in marine habitats.  There were no significant relationships between DDE or total PCBs and trophic status as indexed by stable isotope ratios (delta ¹⁵ N), within marine nestlings.  Potential point sources in a six-bay area of coastal Maine were indicated by local differences in contaminant concentrations in biota from Frenchman Bay and adjacent Gouldsboro Bay.  Atmospheric deposition also is a potential source, since Maine eagles have similar DDE and PCB concentrations to other North American eagle populations from industrially polluted areas, and Maine is subject to other atmospherically deposited pollutants.  

At the population level, productivity (fledglings per occupied territory) is lower in Maine than other populations, and below recovery goals.  There was no significant relationships between DDE or PCB concentrations and mean annual number of fledglings per occupied territory for eight watersheds within Maine, but contaminant concentrations found in Maine eagles have been associated with decreased productivity elsewhere.  Additionally, there were significant relationships between productivity and spring weather variables.  At the individual level, no significant relationships between blood parasite levels and contaminants were found; overall parasitemias in Maine eaglets were low.  Few significant relationships were found between contaminants and sex-specific circulating estradiol and testosterone.  This analysis is preliminary, however, as sexing methods were not completely accurate.

In conclusion, few effects of high DDE and PCB contaminant concentrations on individuals were apparent.  However, concentrations were associated with decreased population productivity, as was spring weather.  Maine eagles were useful as indicators of ecosystem chemical contamination, indicating potential point sources, but atmospheric deposition and biomagnification may contribute to the overall high organochlorine contaminant concentrations within Maine eagles.

Dissertation not available through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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7.  Environmental Contaminants in Fish and Mussels from Meddybemps Lake, the Dennys River, and East Machias River.  Eastern Surplus Superfund Site, Meddybemps, Maine.  1998.  Mierzykowski S.E. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS. Special Project Report FY98-MEFO-1-EC.  Maine Field Office.  Old Town, ME. 170 pp. 

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6.  Environmental Contaminants in Fish from Mere Brook, U.S. Naval Air Station, Brunswick, Maine.  1997.  Mierzykowski S.E., F.T. Prior, K.M. Munney and K.C. Carr.  USFWS. Special Project Report FY97-MEFO-3-EC.  New England Field Office. Old Town, ME.  46 pp.

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5.  Toxicity Tests and Sediment Chemistry at Site 9 (Neptune Drive Disposal Site), U.S. Naval Air Station, Brunswick, Maine.  1997.  Mierzykowski S.E., C.G. Ingersoll and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY97-MEFO-1-EC.  New England Field Offices.  Old Town, ME. 36 pp.

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4.  Environmental Contaminants in Fish from the Nashua River, Fort Devens, Ayer, Massachusetts.  1997.  Mierzykowski S.E., F.T. Prior, K.M. Munney and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.   Special Project Report FY97-MEFO-5-EC.  New England Field Offices.  Old Town, ME. 68 pp.

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3.  Contaminant Burdens and Reproductive Rates of Bald Eagles Breeding in Maine.  1994.  Welch L.J.  M.S. Thesis.  University of Maine.  Orono, ME.

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2.  Concentrations of Mercury and Other Environmental Contaminants in Fish from Grove Pond, Ayer, Massachusetts. 1993.  Mierzykowski S.E., A.R. Major and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY93-NEFO-4-EC.  New England Field Offices.  Old Town, ME. 50 pp.

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1.  Screening Level Contaminant Survey of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge.  1991.  Major A.R. and K.C. Carr.  USFWS.  Special Project Report FY91-NEFO-7-EC.  New England Field Offices.  Concord, NH. 29 pp.

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