Environmental pollution is a topic of great interest because it directly affects the quality of ecosystems and of all living organisms at different trophic and systematic levels. Together with the global climate change, the long-term surviving of many species of plants and animals is threaten, distributional patterns at global and regional levels are altered and it results in local assemblages of species that are quite different from those that currently constitute coevolved communities..For this study, the species Myotis myotis was used as bioindicator and it was sampled from two caves in the south-east of Sicily, Pipistrelli chosen as control area and Palombara chosen as polluted area, to measure the concentrations of trace elements in fur and liver tissues. Results showed higher content of essential elements in fur in bats sampled from Pipistrelli. Conversely, higher concentrations of toxic metals in liver such as As, Cd, Pb and Hg were measured in bat samples in Palombara cave, where specimens have a hunting area extended within the boundaries of the petrochemical plant. Nevertheless, we cannot consider Palombara population as polluted by metal contamination since their tissue concentrations are overall lower than toxic thresholds values suggested for small mammals. Likewise, we cannot exclude other kind of pollutants as potential stressors of the examined population, contributing with the decreasing of bat colonies in Sicily. Bats sampled in Palombara cave revealed a greater chronic exposure to toxic metals than specimens sampled in Pipistrelli cave. Nevertheless, metal concentrations are in the range than other literature findings and lower than toxic thresholds or upper range values suggested for small mammals.

Trace elements bioaccumulation in liver and fur of Myotis myotis from two caves of the eastern side of Sicily (Italy): A comparison between a control and a polluted area

Ferrante, Margherita
Primo
Writing – Review & Editing
;
Spena, Maria Teresa
Secondo
;
Grasso, Alfina;Grasso, Rosario;Brundo, Maria Violetta;Copat, Chiara.
Ultimo
Writing – Review & Editing
2018-01-01

Abstract

Environmental pollution is a topic of great interest because it directly affects the quality of ecosystems and of all living organisms at different trophic and systematic levels. Together with the global climate change, the long-term surviving of many species of plants and animals is threaten, distributional patterns at global and regional levels are altered and it results in local assemblages of species that are quite different from those that currently constitute coevolved communities..For this study, the species Myotis myotis was used as bioindicator and it was sampled from two caves in the south-east of Sicily, Pipistrelli chosen as control area and Palombara chosen as polluted area, to measure the concentrations of trace elements in fur and liver tissues. Results showed higher content of essential elements in fur in bats sampled from Pipistrelli. Conversely, higher concentrations of toxic metals in liver such as As, Cd, Pb and Hg were measured in bat samples in Palombara cave, where specimens have a hunting area extended within the boundaries of the petrochemical plant. Nevertheless, we cannot consider Palombara population as polluted by metal contamination since their tissue concentrations are overall lower than toxic thresholds values suggested for small mammals. Likewise, we cannot exclude other kind of pollutants as potential stressors of the examined population, contributing with the decreasing of bat colonies in Sicily. Bats sampled in Palombara cave revealed a greater chronic exposure to toxic metals than specimens sampled in Pipistrelli cave. Nevertheless, metal concentrations are in the range than other literature findings and lower than toxic thresholds or upper range values suggested for small mammals.
2018
Bats; Ecotoxicology; Italy; Metals; Myotis myotis; Toxicology; Pollution; Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11769/332734
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