First report of heavy metal presence in muscular tissue of loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) from the
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SHORT RESEARCH AND DISCUSSION ARTICLE
First report of heavy metal presence in muscular tissue of loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) from the Balearic Sea (Balearic Islands, Spain) Maria Febrer-Serra 1 & Emanuela Renga 2 & Gloria Fernández 2 & Nil Lassnig 1 & Silvia Tejada 3,4 & Xavier Capó 5 & Samuel Pinya 1,6 & Antoni Sureda 4,5 Received: 6 March 2020 / Accepted: 10 August 2020 # Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract The concentrations of cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) were determined in muscular tissue of eleven loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) from the Balearic Islands (Spain, Western Mediterranean). The metal levels found in the present study were similar or lower than concentrations detected in Andalusia (mainland Spain), Italy, Canary Islands (Spain) or Japan. As the main source of metals in the loggerhead turtle is the diet, low metal burdens could be explained by its opportunistic feeding way. No significant differences were found in metal concentrations between juveniles and subadults in any of the heavy metals analysed. Furthermore, no significant correlation was detected between heavy metal concentrations and straight carapace length (SCL) of the studied individuals. These results could derive from the homogeneity in age and size of the turtles sampled, so further studies including adults are needed in order to assess the heavy metal accumulation with turtle growth. Keywords Caretta caretta . Heavy metals . Cadmium . Mercury . Lead . Western Mediterranean
Three species of marine turtle are known to occur regularly in the Mediterranean Sea. These species are the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta, L.), the green turtle (Chelonia mydas L.) and Responsible Editor: Philippe Garrigues * Samuel Pinya [email protected] 1
Interdisciplinary Ecology Group, Biology Department, University of the Balearic Islands, Ctra. Valldemossa km 7.5, 07122 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain
2
Palma Aquarium Foundation, Carrer Manuela de los Herreros i Sorà 21, 07610 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain
3
Laboratory of neurophysiology, Biology Department and IdisBa, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain
4
CIBEROBN (Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition), University of the Balearic Islands, Ctra. Valldemossa km 7.5, 07122 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain
5
Research Group on Community Nutrition and Oxidative Stress (NUCOX) and IdisBa, University of the Balearic Islands, Ctra. Valldemossa km 7.5, 07122 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain
6
Natural Sciences Museum of the Balearic Islands, Ctra Palma – Sóller km 30, 07100 Sóller, Balearic Islands, Spain
the leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea; Vandelli, 1761) (Groombridge 1990). Among them, C. caretta is the most common species in the Mediterranean (Franzellitti et al. 2004). However, loggerhead turtles inhabiting this basin are threatened as a result of human activity being bycatch, vessel strikes and environmental pollution (including debris and chemical pollution) the most common t
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