Metal and trace element concentrations in cetaceans worldwide: A review.
- Resource Type
- Academic Journal
- Authors
- Delgado-Suarez I; Toxicology Area, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Toxicology, Legal and Forensic Medicine and Parasitology, University of La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.; Lozano-Bilbao E; Toxicology Area, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Toxicology, Legal and Forensic Medicine and Parasitology, University of La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.; Hardisson A; Toxicology Area, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Toxicology, Legal and Forensic Medicine and Parasitology, University of La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.; Paz S; Toxicology Area, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Toxicology, Legal and Forensic Medicine and Parasitology, University of La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.; Gutiérrez ÁJ; Toxicology Area, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Toxicology, Legal and Forensic Medicine and Parasitology, University of La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. Electronic address: ajguti@ull.edu.es.
- Source
- Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 0260231 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1879-3363 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 0025326X NLM ISO Abbreviation: Mar Pollut Bull Subsets: MEDLINE
- Subject
- Language
- English
This bibliographical review is a compilation of different scientific publications that reported data on metal concentrations in the muscle tissue of different species of cetaceans from seas and oceans around the world. Forty-nine scientific articles were selected, published over a fifteen-year period (2006-2021) with data on heavy metals and trace elements. The different groups of cetaceans considered in this study generally presented low concentrations of Cd and Pb. The same cannot be said of Hg. The highest concentrations of Hg were found in the groups of false killer whales. Similarly, the use of these groups of cetaceans as bioindicators of metal contamination shows that the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most metallically contaminated areas in the world. This may be due to the closed nature of the Mediterranean Sea and to the fact that it is also a highly populated and industrialized area.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
(Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)