Life Sciences Commons^™

Virginia Wild-Caught Blue Catfish: Nutrition And Contaminant Analysis, Robert A. Fisher

Reports

The blue catfish, Ictalurus furcatus, is an introduced freshwater species in Virginia’s tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay. Since its introduction in the 1970’s, significant recreational and commercial fisheries have developed within upriver, largely freshwater environments. Blue catfish are voracious, opportunistic predators, feeding on a variety of natural prey items, including native fish and shellfish species. Their varied diets result in a more nutrient-rich fish compared to farmraised catfish (USDA Food and Nutrient Database https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app. html#/?query=catfish) on the market, which are typically fed a plant-based diet.

In recent years, blue catfish populations have expanded from upriver freshwater habitat to major brackish-water …

Kepone In The James River Estuary: Past, Current And Future Trends, Michael A. Unger, George G. Vadas

Reports

In late 1975, a manufacturing facility in Hopewell, VA had not only exposed workers to the chlorinated pesticide, Kepone, but had also severely contaminated the James River estuary. To assess the potential risk to the public, Virginia initiated a finfish-monitoring program in late 1975. Over the next 40 years over 13,000 samples were collected from the James River and Chesapeake Bay and analyzed for Kepone. Kepone production was eventually banned worldwide. The average Kepone concentrations found in most species began falling when the production of Kepone ended, but the averages remained over the action limit of 0.3 mgkg^-1 until …

The Elizabeth River Monitoring Program 2006-2007: Association Between Mummichog Liver Histopathology And Sediment Chemical Contamination, Wolfgang K. Vogelbein, Michael A. Unger, David Gauthier

Reports

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has conducted an environmental monitoring program in the Elizabeth River, Virginia for several years. The overall aim of this monitoring program has been to develop an assessment of the rivers “health” and to develop methods that would allow DEQ to track the state of the watershed through implementation of a long-term monitoring program for water, sediment and biota. This report summarizes the results from an investigation of mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus) liver pathology and sediment chemical analyses.

Ambient Toxicity Of Water Samples From Four Locations In The Elizabeth River : A Comparison Of Species Sensitivities, Morris H. Roberts, Peter F. De Lisle

Reports

In the present study, the objective was to evaluate four species for relative sensitivity when challenged with ambient water from four locations in the Elizabeth River, ranging from locations considered to be free of toxicity to an area known to have copper concentrations that exceeded water quality standards in past sampling.

Histopathological Analyses Of Tissue Sections Of The Eyes Of Indigenous Species Of Marine/Estuarine And Estuarine Fish, Willliam J. Hargis Jr.

Reports

The Elizabeth River is the most heavily settled and industrialized major subestuary in Virginia's Chesapeake System. Under increasing use and development since around 1610, its' waters have been exposed to all types of domestic, agricultural, military and industrial contaminants. ....Its sediments are contaminated by heavy metals, PAHs and all other introduced materials that accumulate and are stored there, with or without chemical transformation.... Collection of fish began in the Elizabeth River in the summer of 1982.

Evaluation Of The Toxicity Of Contaminated Sediments In The James River, Virginia, Morris H. Roberts, Charles J. Strobel

Reports

The Virginia State Water Control.Board, in cooperation with the Department of Chemical Oceanography of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science has recently conducted periodic chemical surveys of organic pollutants in the sediments of the upper James River. The August 1983 survey showed elevated concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) at Stations ·4 and 7 (Figure 1 and Table 1). Although the reported concentrations were approximately one order· of magnitude lower than those reported in contaminated areas of the Elizabeth River, they were deemed high enough to warrant_ further study based on reported toxicity of Elizabeth River sediments (Hargis et al. …

Estimate Of The Total Weight Of Kepone In The Major Components Of The Molluscan Fauna Of The James River, Virginia, Dexter S. Haven, Reinaldo Morales-Alamo

Reports

Contamination of the James River in Virgin ia with the pesticide Kepone has resulted in its accumulation in the tissues of the fauna inhabiting the river. Most of the Kepone available to the biota in the river is associated with sediment s (Schneider and Dawson, 1978) and Haven and Morales-Alamo (1979) have shown that oysters and other bivalve molluscs accumulate Kepone in their tissues when exposed to the pesticide associated with sediments in suspension. It is of interest to compare the quantities of Kepone bound in James River sediments with the quantities bound in the molluscan fauna of the river.

The Role Of Filter-Feeding Organisms In Concentration Of Suspended Solids Containing Kepone Into Bottom Deposits, Dexter S. Haven, Reinaldo Morales-Alamo

Reports

Filter-feeding marine animals such as molluscs, tunicates and barnacles filter particles as small as 1 micron from suspension during their feeding process and void them as fecal pellets. These settle at much faster rates than their component particles. Feces or pseudofeces which settle are termed biodeposits. Eighty-two to 93 percent by volume of the particles in the biodeposits of several species of molluscs are smaller than 4 microns; the range in size of those particles is about 1 to 10 microns (Haven and Morales-Alamo, 1973). (...)

Uptake Of Kepone By Oysters Exposed To Contaminated Sediments Mixed With Lignite, Dexter S. Haven, Reinaldo Morales-Alamo

Reports

Preliminary studies conducted by personnel of the Allied Chemical Corporation at Morristown, N. J. suggested that coa] would be used to adsorb Kepone from an aquatic substrate. .The possibility of using coal to bind Kepone contaminating the natural environment indicated further preliminary exploration of the matter.

The Virginia Institute of Marine Science undertook a laboratory study with oysters under contract with the Allied Chemical Corp. to explore that possibility. Lignite was mixd on a 1:10 dry-weight ratio with sediments contaminated with Kepone.

Acute Effect Of Free Chlorine On Selected Estuarine Invertebrates And Vertebrates : Final Report, Morris H. Roberts, Robert J. Diaz

Reports

The objective of this project was to determine acute toxic effects of chlorine on selected estuarine organisms found adjacent to the projected outfall of a sewage treatment plant in the lower York River. The test species specified under contract were ovster (Crassostrea virginica) and clam (Mercenaria mercenaria) larvae, Acartia tonsa (a dominant copepod), and the fishes, menhaden (Brcvoortia tyranus), pipefish (Svngnathus fuscus), blennies (Hypsoplennius hentzi) and sheepshead minnow (Cyprinodon variegatus). The parameter of interest in the tests was mortality when the animals were exposed to a constant level of chlorine for a 48 or 96 hr period.