Toxicology Commons^™

Assessment Of Spilled Toxic Bait By Wild Pigs And Potential Risk To Non-Target Species, John C. Kinsey, Justin A. Foster, Nathan P. Snow, Jason D. Wishart, Linton D. Staples, Janis K. Bush, Kurt V. Vercauteren

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Background

In 2018, a sodium nitrite (SN)-based toxic bait for invasive wild pigs (hereafter wild pigs; Sus scrofa), was evaluated to determine its effectiveness in reducing local wild pig populations in Texas. Localized population reductions of > 70% were achieved, but spillage of bait outside wild pig-specific feeders (bait stations) caused by feeding wild pigs resulted in the deaths of non-target animals. To evaluate risks to non-target animals, we tested whether bait presentation influenced the total amount of bait spilled by wild pigs and estimated the associated risk to non-target species.

Results

We found that bait spilled outside bait stations …

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 …

The Impact Of Nicotine Accumulation Exposure On Lithobates Catebeianus Larvae Mortality, Luke Micek

UCARE Research Products

Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the world and contain over 4,000 chemicals, including the organic compound nicotine (Slaughter et al. 2011). Billions of cigarette butts are littered each year which may wash into bodies of water, impacting the local wildlife. To determine how introduced chemicals impact the environment, it is important to study its effects on indicator species. Amphibians, such as Lithobates catebeianus, act as indicator species due to their extreme sensitivity to chemical changes in its environment. The purpose of this research project was to obtain data to help determine the impact nicotine accumulation has …

Exploration Of Sonic Hedgehog Gene Expression In Fathead Minnows (Pimephales Promelas), Brooke Renee Greiner

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Pollutants, as a result of wastewater treatments, have been shown to have negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems. To better understand the possible consequences caused by effluents on ecosystems, it is important to examine ecotoxicology data. One of the most commonly used species for water quality testing is the fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas. Ecotoxicology can then be taken one step further to understand the effects of pollutants on a molecular level. Previous research had identified effluents as causes for abnormal minnow fin morphology. In order to collect additional data on development, tanks with fathead minnows were placed at the Charleston …

The Effects Of Copper Exposure On Fish Locomotion And Predator-Prey Interactions, Tiffany N. Yanez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study determined the effects of the copper water quality criterion (WQC) by the EPA on [1] swimming performance and [2] predator-prey interactions of the Sailfin Molly, across a salinity gradient. Fish acclimated to FW (0 ppt) and 8-ppt saltwater were exposed to 11.3 and 8.44 µg/L Cu for 96 h, respectively. At the end of the exposures, fish swimming performance was determined by using the critical swimming speed, U_crit, the speed at which a fish cannot longer maintain position in the water column. U_critwas then measured again after a 4-week depuration period to determine if …

Contractile Response Of Bovine Lateral Saphenous Vein To Ergotamine Tartrate Exposed To Different Concentrations Of Molecularly Imprinted Polymer, Manoj B. Kudupoje, James L. Klotz, Alexandros Yiannikouris, Karl A. Dawson, Kyle R. Mcleod, Eric S. Vanzant

Animal and Food Sciences Faculty Publications

Ergot alkaloids, in their active isomeric form, affect animal health and performance, and adsorbents are used to mitigate toxicities by reducing bioavailability. Adsorbents with high specificity (molecularly imprinted polymers: MIP) adsorb ergot alkaloids in vitro, but require evaluation for biological implications. Using ex vivo myography, synthetic polymers were evaluated for effects on the bioactivity of ergotamine tartrate (ETA). Polymers were first evaluated using isotherms. Lateral saphenous veins were collected from 17 steers for four independent studies: dose response of ETA, adsorbent dose response, validation of pre-myograph incubation conditions and MIP/ non-molecularly imprinted polymer (NIP) comparison. Norepinephrine normalized percent contractile response …

Re-Emergence Of The Harmful Algal Bloom Species Alexandrium Monilatum In The Chesapeake Bay: Assessing Bloom Dynamics And Potential Health Impacts, Sarah K.D. Pease, Kimberly S. Reece, Wolfgang K. Vogelbein

Presentations

Effective management of harmful algal blooms (HABs) within a region requires an understanding of species-specific HAB spatial and temporal distributions, bloom dynamics, as well as potential health impacts. In 2007, the southern Chesapeake Bay witnessed its first blooms of the HAB species Alexandrium monilatum. Since then, A. monilatum has bloomed in the region almost annually. A. monilatum produces the toxin ‘goniodomin A’ and is suspected in local mass mortalities of oyster larvae (Crassostrea virginica) grown for aquaculture and restoration projects. Representatives from Virginia’s multimillion dollar oyster aquaculture industry recently expressed great concern over A. monilatum impacts to their businesses; field …

Ramapough/Ford The Impact And Survival Of An Indigenous Community In The Shadow Of Ford Motor Company’S Toxic Legacy, Chuck Stead

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the history of the Ford Motor Company’s impact upon the Ramapo Watershed of New York and New Jersey, as well as upon the Ramapough Munsi Nation, an indigenous population living there. In a 25 year span the automaker produced a record number of vehicles and dumped a massive amount of lead paint, leaving behind a toxic legacy that continues to plaque the area and its residents. The Ramapough people are not unlike many native nations living in the United States who have experienced industrial excess. This study examines the mindset that allows …

Investigating The Endocrine Disrupting Potential Of The Effluent-Dominated Assabet River, Kasie M. Auger

Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014

The Assabet River located in eastern Massachusetts receives treated wastewater

discharges from four major municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs): Westborough, Marlborough, Hudson and Maynard. In periods of low flow, up to 95% of the Assabet River is wastewater effluent. Chemical analyses have shown that municipal wastewaters can contain estrogenic and dioxin-like compounds. Estrogenic compounds such as the natural estrogen 17β-estradiol (E2), the synthetic estrogen 17α-ethinyl estradiol (EE2), and the industrial compound nonylphenol (NP) can induce vitellogenin (VTG) and lead to feminization in male fish. CYP1A1-inducing compounds such as the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) can produce …

Determinación Del Efecto Teratogénico En El Desarrollo Del Tejido Óseo En Rattus Norvegicus Cepa Wistar, Inducido Por La Presencia De Arsénico A Concentraciones Encontradas En Aguas De Zimapán, Hidalgo, México, Mireya Quiterio-Pérez, Juan Carlos Gaytán-Oyarzún, Scott Monks, Alberto José Gordillo-Martínez, Francisco Prieto-García

Estudios científicos en el estado de Hidalgo y zonas aledañas

En el presente trabajo se evaluaron los posibles efectos teratogénicos del Arsénico (As) de las mismas concentraciones registradas en aguas de Zimapán, Hidalgo, empleando ejemplares de Rattus norvegicus de la cepa Wistar, preñadas. Las cuales se sometieron a diferentes concentraciones de Arsenato de Sodio (1887.91 mg/l, 943.95 mg/l y 0.5 mg/l), la concentración 0.5 mg/l corresponde a la registrada en agua de Zimapán, Hidalgo, así como Trióxido de Cromo (166.0 mg/l) utilizado como control positivo y Sacarosa al 5% como un control negativo. Los ejemplares se expusieron del día 7º al 15º de gestación, y se sacrificaron el día 19º …

The Amphipod Orchomenella Pinguis — A Potential Bioindicator For Contamination In The Arctic, Lis Bach, Valery E. Forbes, Ingela Dahllöf

Valery Forbes Publications

Indigenous organisms can be used as bioindicators for effects of contaminants, but no such bioindicator has been established for Arctic areas. Orchomenella pinguis is a benthic amphipod, ubiquitous in the Arctic and can be found in high numbers. We collected O. pinguis at sites with different contamination levels. Population characteristics (body length distribution, average dry weight and amphipod organic content) were related to sediment contaminant concentrations, in order to identify suitable endpoints for using this species as a bioindicator. We show that O. pinguis was prevalent in both clean and contaminated areas, easy to sample and that its population characteristics …

Differences In Pah Tolerance Between Capitella Species: Underlying Biochemical Mechanisms, Lis Bach, Annemette Palmqvist, Lene Juel Rasmussen, Valery E. Forbes

Valery Forbes Publications

The polychaete Capitella capitata consists of a species complex within which differences in tolerance to tox­icants have been observed. For example, it has been shown that Capitella sp. S is more sensitive (e.g., in terms of survival, growth and reproduction) to PAH and other stressors than the more opportunistic Capi­tella sp. I, which is able to take up and biotransform the PAH fluoranthene (Flu). In the present study, an in­vestigation was performed to examine whether differences in tolerance between Capitella species sp. I and sp. S are due to differences in biotransformation, measured as the amount of Flu-metabolites produced by …

Toxicological Studies On Aquatic Contaminants Originating From Coal Production And Utilization: The Induction Of Tolerance To Silver In Laboratory Populations Of Fish And The Chronic Toxicity Of Nickel To Fish Early Life Stages, Wesley J. Birge, Jeffrey A. Black, James F. Hobson, Albert G. Westerman

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity studies were performed on two important coal-derived contaminants, silver and nickel. Silver was investigated with regard to metal-induced tolerance in laboratory populations of the fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas). Fish were exposed to acute silver concentrations following acclimation to sublethal exposures of this metal. Based on median lethal times (LT50), animals which had received 14 days prior exposure to 1.5 and 15 μg Ag/L were three to four times more resistant to silver than were previously unexposed organisms. This metal-induced resistance was not a sustained response. After organisms which had been acclimated to 15 μg/L had been transferred to …

Lead Poisoning Of Sandhill Cranes (Grus Canadensis), R. M. Windingstad, S. M. Kerr, L. N. Locke, J. J. Hurt

Papers in Ornithology

Two wild and two captive sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) were diagnosed by National Wildlife Health Laboratory personnel as having died from lead toxicity. Ingestion of lead fishing weights by the wild cranes and of unspent .22 caliber shell cartidges by the captive cranes were responsible for these deaths. One crane force-fed lead pellets showed an increase of blood lead levels from 0.77 ppm to 23.8 ppm (wet weight) just before its death 15 days following exposure. Liver lead concentrations of sandhill cranes dying of causes other than lead toxicity are presented.

The Induction Of Tolerance To Heavy Metals In Natural And Laboratory Populations Of Fish, Wesley J. Birge, William H. Benson, Jeffrey A. Black

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity studies were performed on two natural populations of fathead minnows. One group of organisms was taken from a metal-contaminated flyash pond associated with a coal-fired power plant and the other group was collected from relatively uncontaminated hatchery ponds. Acute tests indicated that flyash pond fish were significantly more tolerant to cadmium and copper than were hatchery fish. At an exposure concentration of 6.0 mg Cd/L in moderately hard water, the median period of survival for flyash pond fish was 50.0 hr compared to 6.8 hr for hatchery fish. Both groups of organisms were about equally sensitive to zinc. …

Effects Of Organic Compounds On Amphibian Reproduction, Wesley J. Birge, Jeffrey A. Black, Robert A. Kuehne

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity tests were conducted with atrazine, carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, methylene chloride, trisodium nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), and phenol. Each compound was administered to developmental stages of three to five amphibian species. Exposure was initiated at fertilization and maintained through 4 days posthatching. Test responses included lethality and teratogenesis. Different amphibian species exhibited varying degrees of tolerance to the selected compounds. Greatest tolerance usually was observed for the more broadly adapted semi-aquatic and terrestrial species (e.g., Bufo americanus, Bufo fowleri). The more sensitive amphibians usually included those species which normally are restricted to aquatic or moist habitats (e.g., Rana …

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.