Avian Feathers as Bioindicators of the Exposure to Heavy Metal Contamination of Food

作者:Markowski Marcin*; Kalinski Adam; Skwarska Joanna; Wawrzyniak Jaroslaw; Banbura Miroslawa; Markowski Janusz; Zielinski Piotr; Banbura Jerzy
来源:Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 2013, 91(3): 302-305.
DOI:10.1007/s00128-013-1065-9

摘要

The aim of this study was to determine the possibility of using feathers of blue tit nestlings to assess the level of endogenous accumulation of lead. For this purpose we conducted an experiment with lead application to randomly chosen nestlings from eight randomly drawn broods. Five days after the exposure, feathers of lead-treated nestlings had significantly higher lead concentrations than control nestlings. This result suggests that feathers can be used as reliable non-destructive bioindicators to assess the level of heavy metals originating from contaminated food, which is of great significance for comparative studies on ecological consequences of pollution.

  • 出版日期2013-9