Hidden Risk: Mercury in Terrestrial Ecosystems of the Northeast
New Scientific Report Shows High Levels of Mercury in Many Wildlife Species
Mercury accumulation, previously considered a risk for aquatic ecosystems, is also found in many wildlife species living on the land. This new scientific data is presented in a new report published by BRI in partnership with The Nature Conservancy.
Hidden Risk: Mercury in Terrestrial Systems of the Northeast highlights BRI’s scientific findings on high levels of mercury contamination in songbirds and bats throughout 11 northeastern states.
Mercury is a pollutant that is cause for concern at local, regional, and global scales. While areas of high contamination (known as biological mercury hotspots) may occur near mercury-emitting sources, often they do not. Because mercury released into the atmosphere can circle the world before being deposited, wildlife living in habitats located far from point sources of mercury can still be at risk. Although great strides have been made to reduce mercury released into the air and water from human activities, the Hidden Risk report illustrates that high levels of mercury persist in many wildlife species distributed across many habitat types.
Background
For the Media
Press Release
Hidden Risk Report
Download Full White Report (100 pages)
Image Library
HR 3391 Comprehensive National
Mercury Monitoring Act
S. 1183 National Mercury Monitoring Program
The human health effects of mercury contamination are well documented; adverse effects include impacts on cardiovascular health, IQ, workplace productivity, and motor control (Fig. p4). Similarly, mercury negatively affects wildlife populations by hindering behavior and reproduction (Fig. p5). Past investigations have emphasized adverse impacts to fish-eating wildlife, such as common loons, bald eagles, and river otters. In this report, we synthesize current research and document elevated mercury concentrations in a new group of animals—terrestrial invertivores—that until now has largely been ignored in mercury investigations. We show that mercury concentrations in this animal group are significant enough to cause physiological and reproductive harm, creating a major paradigm shift in ecotoxicological research, assessment, monitoring, management, and policy.
Major Findings
- Current environmental mercury loads have the ability to significantly reduce reproductive success in several songbird species of conservation concern in the northeastern U.S. including the saltmarsh sparrow and rusty blackbird (Fig. p9). Standardized monitoring of environmental mercury loads is needed to measure how changes in mercury emissions are related to new U.S. EPA regulations; we suggest that terrestrial invertivores are important indicators for assessing short and long-term changes.
- Bats also build up significant body burdens of mercury; individuals from multiple species from all 10 areas sampled in the northeastern U.S. exceeded the threshold level of adverse impacts (Fig. p9).
- At-risk habitats and associated indicator species are identified based on the species’ level of conservation concern, relative abundance, and ability to build up mercury in their bodies (Fig. p10, Fig. p11).
- Despite rising global mercury emissions, there are actions that both managers and policy makers can take to limit future ecosystem degradation, ranging from cleaning up legacy mercury dump sites to controlling emissions from coal-fired power plants (Fig. p24-25).
- Mercury loading in songbirds is not only restricted during the breeding season; some species, such as the northern waterthrush, build up high levels of mercury during migration and in tropical wintering areas (Fig. p27).
Through greater understanding of both the extent of wildlife exposure and harmful impacts to ecosystem health, it is now clear that increased conservation efforts are necessary to reduce this neurotoxin in our environment for the benefit of wildlife and people.
Hidden Risk in the News
BRI research is featured in the March issue of Discover Magazine.
BRI executive director, David Evers, published an editorial in the March issue of Science Chronicles. He collaborated on this piece with Tim Tear, director of conservation science for The Nature Conservancy in New York, and David Higby, director of federal government relations for The Nature Conservancy in New York.
BRI’s recent reports: Great Lakes Mercury Connections and Hidden Risk are featured in an article by Sam Inglot in the online magazine Great Lakes Echo
An environmental chain reaction
Mercury is getting into a wide range of birds from global pollution
By Derrick Z. Jackson | GLOBE COLUMNIST
‘Hidden Risk’: Mercury Pollution’s Costs to Wildlife and People
Written by Robert Lalasz
Published on January 24th, 2012
Study: Mercury Contamination Harming Birds and Bats
Reported By: Susan Sharon
A new report by the Gorham-based Biodiversity Research Institute and the Nature Conservancy finds high levels of mercury contamination in songbirds and bats throughout 11 Northeastern states. While the risk of the pollutant to people is well documented through the consumption of fish, this study finds that mercury concentrations in a wide-ranging number of birds and bats are enough to cause physiological and reproductive harm. And it's expected to cause a shift in ecotoxicological research and monitoring.
‘Hidden Risk’: Mercury Pollution’s Costs to Wildlife and People
Written by Robert Lalasz
Published on January 24th, 2012
Mercury’s Harmful Reach Has Grown, Study Suggests
By ANTHONY DePALMA
Songbirds and bats suffer some of the same types of neurological disorders from mercury as humans and especially children do, says the study, “Hidden Risk,” by the Biodiversity Research Institute, a nonprofit organization in Gorham, Me., that investigates emerging environmental threats.
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To obtain a copy of the white paper (Osborne et al. 2011), which summarizes all the data collected,
contact Allyson Jackson (allyson.jackson@briloon.org).
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