POPs contamination of terrestrial- and sea-birds in the southern part of Korea

Abstract

Birds have long been considered as a valuable monitoring species for persistent organic pollutant (POP) contamination. As ‘bird of prey’ birds occupy the top position in a food chain. This leads to severe bioaccumulation and biomagnification with a contamination load that cause concern regarding their survival. They are sensitive to environmental contamination. However, there is very little information on POPs contamination of birds in Korea. In order to understand the status of POP contamination in bird, we analyzed muscle tissues of marine and terrestrial resident birds in this study. Black tailed gull and domestic pigeon were selected as target species for monitoring marine and terrestrial ecosystem, respectively. The overall concentration of POPs were higher in black-tailed gull than pigeon. POPs accumulation showed different patterns in the black-tailed gull and pigeon. PBDE is the major contributor to total POP’s accumulation in pigeon. On the other hand, it was PCB and DDT in the gull. Interestingly, the chemical signature of HCHs and PBDEs were different in two species. Lindane (g-HCH) was relatively abundant in pigeon, due to its current usage in the remedy of head lice. A high proportion of BDE-209 and higher-brominated PBDEs was observed in the pigeon, indicating a direct exposure to the highly brominated BDE mixtures through unintentional intake of road dust or soils wh