Mercury exposure may suppress baseline corticosterone levels in juvenile birds

Environmental Science & Technology
Garth HerringMark P Herzog

Abstract

Mercury exposure has been associated with a wide variety of negative reproductive responses in birds, however few studies have examined the potential for chick impairment via the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The HPA axis regulates corticosterone levels during periods of stress. We examined the relationship between baseline fecal corticosterone metabolite concentrations and mercury concentrations in down feathers of recently hatched (<3 days) and blood of older (15-37 days) Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri) chicks in San Francisco Bay, California. Baseline fecal corticosterone metabolite concentrations were negatively correlated with mercury concentrations in blood of older chicks (decreasing by 81% across the range of observed mercury concentrations) while accounting for positive correlations between corticosterone concentrations and number of fledgling chicks within the colony and chick age. In recently hatched chicks, baseline fecal corticosterone metabolite concentrations were weakly negatively correlated with mercury concentrations in down feathers (decreasing by 45% across the range of observed mercury concentrations) while accounting for stronger positive correlations between corticosterone concentrations and...Continue Reading

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Jan 18, 2014·Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry·Christina S MooreEric L Bradley
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Nov 20, 2016·Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry·Garth HerringJoshua T Ackerman
Dec 17, 2019·The Science of the Total Environment·T PowolnyM Coeurdassier

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