The browser you are using is not supported by this website. All versions of Internet Explorer are no longer supported, either by us or Microsoft (read more here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/windows/end-of-ie-support).

Please use a modern browser to fully experience our website, such as the newest versions of Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari etc.

Reproductive status and lipid content as factors in PCB, DDT and HCH contamination of a pike population (Esox lucius L.)

På svenska

Author

Summary, in English

Levels of persistent pollutants, including PCBs, SIGMADDT, and gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane, were examined in a pike population inhabiting a eutrophic lake in southern Scandinavia. For females, levels of persistent pollutants decreased linearly with age, weight, or length. This decline was ascribed to the seasonal elimination of the lipophilic pollutants in roe, which contained up to 10 times higher fat levels compared to muscle and over 10 times the amounts of pollutants. Male pike contained higher levels of pollutants than females, probably due to the lower elimination via gonadal products, as germinal tissue constitutes only 2% of the male total body weight and has a lower fat content than ovaries. Female germinal tissue can account for as much as 15% of the body weight. No major fat deposits other than those in germinal tissue were found in pike, which also had a low muscle fat content, suggesting that the importance of roe elimination in removing pollutants may be greater in pike than in salmonids. Uptake of persistent pollutants can vary greatly within a species, owing to differences in sex, age, and so forth, as well as between species, owing to differences in fat deposition strategies.

Publishing year

1993

Language

English

Pages

855-861

Publication/Series

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

Volume

12

Issue

5

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Topic

  • Biological Sciences

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0730-7268