Mercury, DDT, and PCB in Harbour Seals (Phoca vitulina) from the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine

1973 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 471-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Gaskin ◽  
R. Frank ◽  
M. Holdrinet ◽  
K. Ishida ◽  
C. J. Walton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Brunswick ◽  
Total Mercury ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Phoca Vitulina ◽  
Mercury Content ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Longissimus Muscle ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Total Liver ◽  
Harbour Seals

Samples of blubber, longissimus muscle, liver, and cerebrum from 12 harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) were analyzed for DDT, dieldrin, PCBs, and total mercury content. The results were compared with those obtained previously for harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena). DDT and PCB levels appear to be of the same magnitude in the fat of seals from both southern New Brunswick and southern Maine, being lowest in a lactating female. Virtually no o,p′-DDT and relatively little dieldrin were found in seal fat, in contrast to porpoises, which contained significant amounts of both in the depot fat. Mercury levels were generally similar to those found for porpoises, but total liver Hg was considerably greater in adults from the New Brunswick islands than in those from the southern Maine ledges.

Mercury in Harbour Porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) From the Bay of Fundy Region

1972 ◽  
Vol 29 (11) ◽  
pp. 1644-1646 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Gaskin ◽  
K. Ishida ◽  
R. Frank
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Tissue ◽  
Liver Tissue ◽  
Total Mercury ◽  
Mercury Content ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Total Hg ◽  
Made In

During 1969–71, 41 muscle and 20 liver samples were collected from harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in the Bay of Fundy region. These tissues were analyzed for total mercury content. Total Hg levels ranged from 0.21 to 1.92 ppm (average 0.75) in muscle tissue of males and from 0.26 to 2.58 ppm(average 1.02) in muscle tissue of females; from 0.89 to 18.30 ppm in liver tissue of males and from 0.55 to 91.30 ppm in liver tissue of females. Averages for the two latter series would be meaningless. A limited number (four muscle and six liver samples) of determinations of the methylated fraction were also made. In the muscle, Hg was virtually 100% methylated; in the liver the methylated fraction varied from 7.4 to 41%, being lowest in livers with highest total Hg.

Preliminary study of movements of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in the Bay of Fundy using radiotelemetry

1975 ◽  
Vol 53 (10) ◽  
pp. 1466-1471 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Gaskin ◽  
G. J. D. Smith ◽  
A. P. Watson
Keyword(s):  
New Brunswick ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Southern Coast ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Dorsal Fin ◽  
Normal Behavior ◽  
Intermittent Contact ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Time Average ◽  
Harbor Porpoises

Six harbor porpoises captured in herring weirs between September 1973 and September 1974 on the southern coast of New Brunswick were tagged and released. The three smallest animals were given visible dorsal fin tags, and the three larger specimens radiotelemetric packages attached to their dorsal fins. These animals were tracked using an ADFS-210 receiver coupled with a fixed-loop array on a 6.7-m mast antenna. Good signals were received at distances of up to 16 km using frequencies in the 26–28 MHz region. Most tracking problems resulted from interference from citizen-band operations and "skip" at certain times of the day and night. The transmitters appeared to cause little or no disruption of normal behavior in the larger animals. Intermittent contact was maintained for 2, 3, and 11 days respectively before the animals moved out of range. A total of 76 h, 29 min actual radiotracking time was recorded. Some tentative estimates of distances travelled per unit time, average swimming speeds, and apparent time spent foraging and feeding are tabulated.

On the Occurrence and Distribution of Larval Herring (Clupea harengus L.) in the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine

1958 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 1451-1469 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. N. Tibbo ◽  
J. E. Henri Legaré ◽  
Leslie W. Scattergood ◽  
R. F. Temple
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
New Brunswick ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Surface Currents ◽  
Georges Bank ◽  
Spawning Areas ◽  
Northern Edge ◽  
Newly Hatched Larvae

A major portion of the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine has been surveyed for occurrence and distribution of herring larvae. Plankton samples obtained with Hardy continuous plankton recorders and plankton nets confirm major spawning areas off the southwest coast of Nova Scotia and on the northern edge of Georges Bank. Newly hatched larvae were found in abundance in these areas, but nowhere else. Drift of larvae as indicated by non-tidal surface currents suggests that Nova Scotia spawnings may contribute substantially to commercial stocks of herring in inshore areas of Maine and New Brunswick. It is possible that Georges Bank spawnings also supply herring to this region.

scholarly journals Growth of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in eastern Newfoundland, Canada

2003 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 211
Author(s):  
S F Richardson ◽  
G B Stenson ◽  
C Hood
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rates ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Harbour Porpoise ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Phocoena Phocoena ◽  
Growth Data ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
Gompertz Growth Model ◽  
One Year ◽  
Separate Population

Although the stock relationships among harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in the Northwest Atlantic are unknown, it has been postulated that there are 4 local populations: Bay of Fundy/Gulf of Maine, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, and west Greenland. Data on the Newfoundland population are extremely limited. To determine growth rates and examine if these animals can be differentiated from other sub-populations on the basis of growth characteristics, 94 porpoises caught incidentally in fishing gear along the southeast coast of Newfoundland during the summers of 1990 and 1991 were examined. Most porpoises (56%) were ≤ 4 years of age. Maximum age was 9 for females and 12 for males. Growth rates were similar for both sexes until one year of age, after which females grew longer and weighed more than males of similar ages. Using the Gompertz growth model, asymptotic values for body length were 156.3 cm for females and 142.9 cm for males. Asymptotic weights were 61.6 kg and 49.1 kg for females and males respectively. With the exception of West Greenland porpoise that were shorter and females from Norway that were lighter, Newfoundland porpoises could not be differentiated from animals collected in other areas based on growth data. However, differences in dental deposition patterns were noted suggesting that Newfoundland porpoise may belong to a separate population.

Incidence of the Ascarid Porrocaecum decipiens in the Stomachs of Three Species of Seals along the Southern Canadian Atlantic Mainland

1958 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 495-516 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. M. Scott ◽  
H. D. Fisher
Keyword(s):  
East Coast ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Phoca Vitulina ◽  
The Other ◽  
Harp Seal ◽  
Harbour Seal ◽  
Halichoerus Grypus ◽  
Bay Of Fundy ◽  
Harbour Seals

Identifications were made of ascarids collected from 1948 to 1956 from the stomachs of 318 harbour seals (Phoca vitulina), 812 harp seals (P. groenlandica), and 127 grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) killed in several localities along the Atlantic coast of Canada. Porrocaecum and 2 other genera of ascarids, tentatively identified as Anisakis and Contracaecum, were present in each species of seal. All 112 male Porrocaecum that were identified to species were P. decipiens.Almost all stomachs of harbour and grey seals at all seasons and in all localities contained P. decipiens. Considering all localities, the overall average incidence was about 20 adult P. decipiens in harbour seals and about 100 in grey seals.P. decipiens was normally much rarer in the stomachs of harp seals than in the other seals. It appeared most frequently in harp seals taken around the Magdalen Islands in April and May. The incidence of adult P. decipiens was much lower during the breeding season of the seals and during their southward and northward migrations within the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The incidence of P. decipiens in harp seals from the east coast of Newfoundland was very low.The relative importance of each species of seal as a vector of P. decipiens is as follows. The harbour seal is the most important in the Bay of Fundy and along the southwestern coast of Nova Scotia. Elsewhere harbour and grey seals occur in approximately equal numbers. In such localities the grey seal is probably more important than the harbour seal. The harp seal is about 100 to 200 times as numerous, while in the southwestern Gulf of St. Lawrence, as the combined populations of harbour and grey seals there. Despite this great numerical superiority the harp seal does not appear to be more important than the other seals as a host of P. decipiens.The relation between each species of seal and the incidence of larval P. decipiens in Atlantic cod (Gadus callarias) is discussed.

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