Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are anthropogenic chemicals whose
environmental behavior is similar to the well-known polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Few studies have quantified the amount and distribution of PBDEs in the southern
hemisphere and Antarctica. The analyses reported in this dissertation document the
levels of PBDEs in lichens, mosses and seabird eggs collected at King George Island,
Antarctic Peninsula. The analyses were carried out using Gas Chromatography/Electron
Impact-Mass Spectrometry (GC/EI-MS). Employing the ion stacking technique lowered
detection limits and ensured instrument selectivity and sensitivity to the compounds of
interest.
Lichens and mosses absorb PBDEs directly from the atmosphere and their
contamination indicates that long-range transport is the primary source of these
chemicals to King George Island. The congener patterns of PBDEs in plants indicate that
commercial mixtures of Penta-BDE and Octa-BDE have reached Antarctica. Differences
in the levels of PBDEs observed in lichens and mosses are probably due to factors that govern the uptake of PBDEs from the atmosphere. Contamination in lichens showed a
positive correlation with local precipitation. Conversely, absorption of PBDEs in mosses
appears to be controlled by other plant-specific factors. Marine phytoplankton-derived
aerosols are hypothesized to play an important role in the atmospheric transport of
PBDEs to the Antarctic environment.
PBDEs in south polar skua eggs revealed much higher concentration than in
penguin eggs. This is likely associated with the northward migration of these seabirds
during the non-breeding season. While penguins reside year-round in Antarctica, south
polar skuas migrate northward and can be seen in boreal oceans during the austral
winter. Distribution of PBDEs in penguin eggs matches the pattern found in local
vegetation suggesting a common source for the chemicals. In contrast, the congener
pattern of south polar skuas suggests that birds breeding at King George Island are
wintering in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. A potential metabolism of PBDEs in
penguin eggs during the incubation period seems to be limited. Most congeners were
unaltered from source material in the eggs of chinstrap and gentoo penguins. Low levels
of PBDEs, short incubation periods and energy constraints may explain these
observations.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-3032 |
| Date | 15 May 2009 |
| Creators | Yogui, Gilvan Takeshi |
| Contributors | Kennicutt II, Mahlon C., Sericano, Jose L. |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Dissertation, text |
| Format | electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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