Special Issue "Wildlife Toxicology: An Update on Contaminant Exposure and Effects"

A special issue of Toxics (ISSN 2305-6304). This special issue belongs to the section "Ecotoxicology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 November 2021.

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Silvia Espín
E-Mail
Guest Editor
Department of Socio-Sanitary Sciences, University of Murcia, Campus de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain
Interests: ecotoxicology; biomonitoring; contaminants; environmental pollution; exposure; effects; wildlife; biomarkers

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Wildlife can be exposed to multiple contaminants (e.g., plant protection products and biocides, metals, industrial compounds, and pharmaceuticals) associated with deleterious effects in the organism, including endocrine disruption, immune suppression, oxidative stress, and altered behavior, reproduction, or development, as well as acute mortality in some cases. Assessing these chemically induced effects in wildlife is a major environmental concern in ecotoxicology, since such effects may have critical consequences at the individual and population levels. Controlled lab experiments in model species help us to explore the specific direct effects of contaminants (single or combined) while controlling for confounding variables. On the other hand, field studies are an essential tool for evaluating spatio-temporal trends in contaminant exposure and the potential effects on wildlife exposed to the actual environmental concentrations, with a natural diet and the presence of other stressors. At present, there is a good number of studies providing us with a better understanding of these issues; however, for certain animal taxa and contaminant types, little to no information is available.

This Special Issue of Toxics aims to describe the current state of our knowledge on wildlife toxicology. Publications (original research articles, reviews, and short communications) may include field/biomonitoring studies evaluating (legacy/emerging) contaminant exposure and related effects in wildlife, experimental studies at environmentally relevant doses that predict chemical-related effects in free-living animals, and studies developing new methods for the determination of contaminants or biomarkers. We would also welcome the submission of commentaries, reviews, and meta-analyses.

Dr. Silvia Espin
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ecotoxicology
  • biomonitoring
  • contaminants
  • environmental pollution
  • exposure
  • effects
  • wildlife
  • biomarkers

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

Article
Whole-Body Acute Contact Toxicity of Formulated Insecticide Mixtures to Blue Orchard Bees (Osmia lignaria)
Toxics 2021, 9(3), 61; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics9030061 - 17 Mar 2021
Viewed by 769
Abstract
Blue orchard bees, [Osmia lignaria (Say) (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae)], have been developed as an important pollinator for orchard crops in North America over the last 40 years. The toxicity of several pesticides to O. lignaria and other Osmia species has been previously reported. [...] Read more.
Blue orchard bees, [Osmia lignaria (Say) (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae)], have been developed as an important pollinator for orchard crops in North America over the last 40 years. The toxicity of several pesticides to O. lignaria and other Osmia species has been previously reported. However, the field-realistic toxicity of formulated premix insecticides comprised of multiple active ingredients (each with a different mode of action) to O. lignaria has not been assessed. Here, we use a customized spray tower in a laboratory setting to assess adult male and female whole-body direct contact exposure to four formulated pesticide mixtures: thiamethoxam + lambda-cyhalothrin (TLC), imidacloprid + beta-cyfluthrin (IBC), chlorantraniliprole + lambda-cyhalothrin (CLC) and methoxyfenozide + spinetoram (MS) by directly spraying anesthetized bees in Petri dishes. Separately, adult male and female whole-body direct contact exposure to formulated imidacloprid (I), beta-cyfluthrin (BC) and their 1:1 binary combination (IBC) was assessed using the same experimental method. Resulting mortality in each study was screened up to 96 h post-treatment to determine acute whole-body contact toxicity. In the first study, TLC and IBC resulted in statistically higher mortality at 24 and 48 h than the two other insecticide combinations tested. The CLC and MS combinations were slower acting and the highest mortality for O. lignaria exposed to these mixtures was recorded at 96 h. We did observe significant differences in toxicity between CLC and MS. In the second study, exposure to the 1:1 binary combination of IBC caused overall significantly higher mortality than exposure to I or BC alone. Both active ingredients alone, however, demonstrated equivalent levels of mortality to the 1:1 binary combination treatment at the 96 h observation reading, indicating increased speed of kill, but not necessarily increased toxicity. Significant differences in the onset of mortality following acute contact whole-body exposure to the formulated insecticide mixtures and individual active ingredients tested were consistently observed across all experiments in both studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Toxicology: An Update on Contaminant Exposure and Effects)
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Article
Occurrence of Bisphenols and Benzophenone UV Filters in White-Tailed Eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) from Smøla, Norway
Toxics 2021, 9(2), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics9020034 - 09 Feb 2021
Viewed by 753
Abstract
There is a growing concern about the occurrence of bisphenols and benzophenone UV filters in natural ecosystems, while data are limited regarding their actual occurrence in wildlife species, especially in raptors. In this study, concentrations of bisphenol and benzophenone UV filter analogues were [...] Read more.
There is a growing concern about the occurrence of bisphenols and benzophenone UV filters in natural ecosystems, while data are limited regarding their actual occurrence in wildlife species, especially in raptors. In this study, concentrations of bisphenol and benzophenone UV filter analogues were determined in liver tissue samples (n = 38) from white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) that were found dead in Smøla (2006–2018), which is a Norwegian municipality that holds one of the densest breeding populations of white-tailed eagles in Europe. Bisphenol AF (BPAF; a fluorinated analogue) was the most ubiquitous contaminant since it was detected in 32 liver samples at concentrations ranging from 1.08 to 6.68 ng/g wet weight (w.w.), followed by bisphenol A (BPA, mean 10.4 ng/g w.w.), benzophenone-1 (BzP-1, mean 3.24 ng/g w.w.), and 4-hydroxybenzophenone (4-OH-BzP, mean 0.62 ng/g w.w.). The concentrations found in livers suggested that white-tailed eagles potentially accumulate bisphenols and benzophenone UV filters, which raises concern, as these plastic and personal care product-related emerging contaminants can show endocrine-disrupting properties. The high detection frequency of the fluorinated BPAF warrants further attention as other fluorinated compounds have proven to be extremely persistent and potentially harmful to wildlife. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Toxicology: An Update on Contaminant Exposure and Effects)
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Article
Bird Feces as Indicators of Metal Pollution: Pitfalls and Solutions
Toxics 2020, 8(4), 124; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics8040124 - 18 Dec 2020
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 737
Abstract
Bird feces are commonly used as a proxy for measuring dietary metal exposure levels in wild populations. Our study aims to improve the reliability and repeatability of fecal metal measurements and gives some recommendations for sampling. First, we studied levels of variation in [...] Read more.
Bird feces are commonly used as a proxy for measuring dietary metal exposure levels in wild populations. Our study aims to improve the reliability and repeatability of fecal metal measurements and gives some recommendations for sampling. First, we studied levels of variation in metallic element (arsenic, calcium, cadmium, cobalt, copper, nickel, lead) concentrations: temporal variation within an individual, among siblings in a brood and among-brood/spatial variation. Second, we explored the variation caused by dual composition (urate vs. feces) of bird droppings. Two sets of fresh fecal samples were collected from pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) nestlings living in a metal polluted area in summers 2017 (dataset 1) and 2018 (dataset 2). We found a great deal of temporal intra-individual variation in metal levels, suggesting that dietary exposure varied markedly in a short time scale (within a day). A sample from only one nestling per brood did not well describe the brood mean value, and we recommend that at least four siblings should be sampled. Brood level samples give relatively good temporal repeatability for most metals. For all the metals, the levels in the fecal portion were more than double to those in the urate portion. Since the mass proportion of urate in the bird droppings varied a great deal among samples, standardizing sampling, e.g., by collecting only the fecal part, would markedly reduce the variation due to composition. Alternatively, urate portion could be used for biomonitoring of internally circulated bioavailable metal. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Toxicology: An Update on Contaminant Exposure and Effects)
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Article
Temporal Persistence of Bromadiolone in Decomposing Bodies of Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
Toxics 2020, 8(4), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics8040098 - 07 Nov 2020
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1041
Abstract
Bromadiolone is a second generation anticoagulant rodenticide (SGAR) used to control pest rodents worldwide. SGARs are frequently involved in secondary poisoning in rodent predators due to their persistence and toxicity. This study aims to evaluate the persistence of bromadiolone in liver at different [...] Read more.
Bromadiolone is a second generation anticoagulant rodenticide (SGAR) used to control pest rodents worldwide. SGARs are frequently involved in secondary poisoning in rodent predators due to their persistence and toxicity. This study aims to evaluate the persistence of bromadiolone in liver at different stages of carcass decomposition in experimentally-dosed common kestrels (Falco tinnunculus) to understand the possibility of detecting bromadiolone in cases of wildlife poisoning and the potential risk of tertiary poisoning. Twelve individuals were divided into the bromadiolone-dose group (dosed with 55 mg/kg b.w) and the control group. Hepatic bromadiolone concentrations found in each stage of decomposition were: 3000, 2891, 4804, 4245, 8848, and 756 ng/g dry weight at 1–2 h (fresh carcass), 24 h (moderate decomposition), 72 h, 96 h (advanced decomposition), seven days (very advanced decomposition), and 15 days (initial skeletal reduction) after death, respectively. Liver bromadiolone concentrations in carcasses remained relatively stable over the first four days and raised on day 7 of decomposition under the specific conditions of this experiment, presenting a risk of causing tertiary poisoning. However, at the initial skeletal reduction stage, liver bromadiolone concentration declined, which should be considered to interpret toxicological analyses and for proper diagnosis. This experimental study provides for the first time some light to better understand the degradation of SGARs in carcasses in the wild. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Toxicology: An Update on Contaminant Exposure and Effects)
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