Annual Variation Birds as indicators of contaminants in the Great Lakes

Publication Date

2018-03-19

Start Date

2010-05-01

End Date

2015-07-01

Custer, C.M., 2018, Annual Variation Birds as indicators of contaminants in the Great Lakes: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/F7SB452P.

Type: Publication that references this resource

It is important to understand normal annual variation in contaminant exposure in order to correctly interpret and understand results of contaminant analyses. Previously published data (Custer et al. 2016, 2017) from 69 sites, both in Great Lakes’ Areas of Concern (AOCs) and nearby non-AOC locations, generally included only one year of chemistry data because of the high costs of chemical analyses. When additional funding became available, a second year, or more, of samples were chemically analyzed from 16 sites to provide insights into normal annual variation in polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) exposure. Sites were chosen if they did not have significant remediation in the drainage that might affect contaminant exposure. One site, however, in the Lower Green Bay and Fox River AOC, was sampled immediately before and after a major sediment dredging operation. Additionally, data from 3 new sites in the Lower Green Bay and Fox River AOC were included. The objective of the current study was to quantify annual variation in PCBs in tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) eggs and nestlings from locations across the Great Lakes, and to assess whether a sample size of 5 was adequate to quantify exposure given the levels and variation of PCBs in the environment.

• Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center (UMESC)

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