Reproductive success, early life stage development, and survival of westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki lewisi) exposed to elevated selenium in an area of active coal mining
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| Authors: | Rudolph, BL; Andreller, I; Kennedy, CJ |
| Year: | 2008 |
| Journal: | Environmental Science & Technology 42: 3109-3114 Article Link (DOI) |
| Title: | Reproductive success, early life stage development, and survival of westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki lewisi) exposed to elevated selenium in an area of active coal mining |
| Abstract: | The effects of accumulated Se on the reproductive success and larval development of cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki lewisi) collected from a site of active coal mining in British Columbia were assessed. Eggs from 12 fish from an exposed site (Clode Pond) and 16 from a reference site (O'Rourke Lake) were field-collected and reared in the laboratory. Egg Se concentrations ranged from 12.3 to 16.7 and 11.8 to 140.0 mu g/g dry weight (dw) from fish collected at the reference and exposed sites, respectively. Other studies, including those with this species, have not shown Se to affect egg viability; however, in the present study, eggs with Se concentrations > 86.3 mu g/g dw were not successfully fertilized or were nonviable at fertilization, while eggs with concentrations > 46.8 and < 75.4 mu g/g dw were fertilized (96% reached the eyed stage) but did not produce viable fry. A significant positive relationship between egg Se concentration and alevin mortality was observed. Deformities were analyzed in surviving fry which developed from eggs with Se concentrations between 11.8 and 20.6 mu g/g dw. No relationship between Se concentration in eggs and deformities or edema was found in this range, suggesting that the no-effect threshold for deformity is > 20.6 mu g/g dw. The present data, in conjunction with the data from several other studies in temperate fish, suggest that current Se thresholds are conservative for cold-water fish. |
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