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Pollutant exposure in coastal top predators: assessing current levels of exposure and toxic effects

This project is highly relevant for the attainment of ASCOBANS goals by generating pollutant data in species that have the greatest recorded exposures on earth and to assess the likely effects of these pollutants on mortality of reproductive function. Such research would clearly comply the Agreement’s Conservation and Management Plan, Resolutions, Activities in the Agreement’s Triennium Work Plan and actions recommended by the Advisory Committee.

Surveys and Research

Use of by-catches and strandings

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Activity 1

Description:Determine and analyse existing pollutant exposure data for PCBs and organochlorine pesticide levels within the ASCOBANS range
Start date:15 March 2011
End date:31 December 2013
Responsibility:Zoological Society of London
Output:Final report to be submitted to the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee assessing the levels of exposure in UK/European bottlenose dolphins and killer whales and their likely toxicological impacts

Activity 2

Description:Compare the levels of PCBs in bottlenose dolphins and killer whales with levels of PCBs in healthy and diseased harbour porpoises in UK waters (Jepson et al 2005; Hall et al 2006) and to a proposed threshold of toxicity for total PCBs of 17mg/kg lipid wei
Start date:15 January 2011
End date:31 December 2013
Responsibility:Zoological Society of London
Output:Final report to be submitted to the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee assessing the levels of exposure in UK/European bottlenose dolphins and killer whales and their likely toxicological impacts

Activity 3

Description:Undertake a risk assessment for the toxic effects of PCB exposure in bottlenose dolphins and killer whales in European water within the ASCOBANS range
Start date:15 January 2011
End date:31 December 2014
Responsibility:Zoological Society of London
Output:Final report to be submitted to the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee assessing the levels of exposure in UK/European bottlenose dolphins and killer whales and their likely toxicological impacts

Activity 4

Description:Using data from UK-stranded harbour porpoises, generate the first dose-response curve for risk assessments of lethal effects of PCBs (i.e. infectious disease mortality) in exposed populations using empirical cetacean data
Start date:15 January 2011
End date:31 December 2014
Responsibility:Zoological Society of London
Output:Final report to be submitted to the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee assessing the levels of exposure in UK/European bottlenose dolphins and killer whales and their likely toxicological impacts

Related content

Scientific name Common name Class Order Family Appendix (App. I / App. II)
Orcinus orca Killer Whale Mammalia Cetacea Delphinidae - / -
Phocoena phocoena Harbour Porpoise Mammalia Cetacea Phocoenidae - / -
Tursiops truncatus Bottlenose Dolphin Mammalia Cetacea Delphinidae - / -
Meeting Start date Status Country CMS Instrument
20th Meeting of the Advisory Committee 27/08/2013 Concluded Poland ASCOBANS
19th Meeting of the Advisory Committee 20/03/2012 Concluded Ireland ASCOBANS
18th Meeting of the Advisory Committee 04/05/2011 Concluded Germany ASCOBANS
Document Number Title CMS Instrument Publish date
AC17/Doc.6-02 rev.2 Project Proposals Received forFuture Funding ASCOBANS 28/09/2010
AC22/Inf.8.1.a Project Report: Pollutant exposure in coastal top predators: assessing current levels of exposure and toxic effects ASCOBANS 03/08/2015

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Implementing AgencyThe Zoological Society of London, Institute of Zoology, United Kingdom
Collaborating agenciesBob Reid, Wildlife Unit, SAC Veterinary Science Division (Inverness), Drummondhill, Stratherrick Road, Inverness, IV2 4JZ, UK, Bob.Reid@sac.co.uk Marine Environmental Monitoring, Penwalk, Llechryd, Cardigan, SA43 2PS, UK, rodpenrose@strandings.demon.co.uk Robin Law, CEFAS Laboratory, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR33 0HT, UK, r.j.law@cefas.co.uk Dr Graham Pierce/Fiona Read, School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Scotland/Instituto Espanol de Oceanografia, Valencia, Spain, g.j.pierce@abdn.ac.uk José Vingada, Soc. Port. Vida Selvagem, Dep. Biologia - Univ. do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga Portugal, spvs@socpvs.org Dr Emer Rogan, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland, e.rogan@ucc.ie Professor Antonio Fernandez, Antonio Fernández, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain, afernandez@dmor.ulpgc.es Prof. Vincent Ridoux, Centre de Recherche sur les Ecosyste`mes Littoraux Anthropise´s, UMR 6217 CNRS-IFREMER-Universite´ de la Rochelle, 22 avenue Michel re´peau, 17042 La Rochelle, France, vridoux@univ-lr.fr Dr Ursula Siebert, Forschungs- und Technologiezentrum Westkueste, Hafentoern, D-25761 Buesum, Germany, ursula.siebert@ftz-west.uni-kiel.de Dr. Simon Berrow, Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, Merchants Quay, Kilrush, County Clare, Ireland, simon.berrow@shannondolphins.ie Dr. Thierry Jauniaux, Department of Veterinary Pathology, University of Liege, Liege, Belgium, t.jauniaux@mumm.ac.be
Activity start dateJanuary 2011
Activity end dateDecember 2013
Taxonomic groupMarine mammals
Final technical reportNo
Pollution
Industry and production