USGS Home
Contact USGS
Search USGS

UMESC Publications

Exposure and effects of chemical contaminants on tree swallows nesting along the Housatonic River, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, USA, 1998-2000

Custer, C. M., Custer, T. W., Dummer, P. M., and Munney, K. L., 2003, Exposure and effects of chemical contaminants on tree swallows nesting along the Housatonic River, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, USA, 1998-2000: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, v. 22, no. 7, p. 1605-1621.

Abstract

Hatching Success of tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) was assessed for three years in relation to chemical contamination along the Housatonic River, Berkshire County (MA, USA). In 1998, 1999, and 2000. Nest boxes were erected at five sites along the Housatonic River and its tributaries and at one reference location. Concentrations of total polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were some of the highest ever reported in bird eggs. Mean concentrations at sites along the Housatonic River ranged between 32 and 101 µg/g wet weight. A significant negative relationship wits observed between concentrations of total PCBs in clutches and hatching success. A significant negative relationship was also observed between hatching success and the sum of the total dioxins and furans and the associated toxic equivalents (TEQs) for dioxins and furans. In a combined model with PCB TEQs and dioxin/furan TEQs, PCB TEQs were not significantly correlated to hatching success, whereas dioxin/furan TEQs were. Contamination of tree swallows was from local food sources. Accumulation rates of total PCBs in 12-d-old nestlings averaged between 34 and 76 µg/d at the sites along the main stem of the Housatonic River compared to <1 µg/d at the reference location.

Keywords

furans, hatching success, Housatonic River, polychlorinated biphenyls, tree swallows, paper-mill effluent, reproductive success, Tachycineta bicolor, polychlorinated biphenyls, Green bay, Hudson River, Great lakes, Fox River, New York, sediments