Bly är giftigt och kan direkt eller indirekt orsaka stora problem hos däggdjur och fåglar.I vissa fall kan blyförgiftning orsaka att de dör. Även om tillförseln av bly till naturen harminskat de senaste decennierna så återstår stora problem. Framför allt för en del rovfåglar och asätande däggdjur. 

Lead poisoning of animals due to ingestion of fragments from lead-based ammunition in carcasses and offal of shot wildlife is acknowledged globally and raises great concerns about potential behavioral effects leading to increased mortality risks. Lead levels in blood were correlated with progress of the moose hunting season. Based on analyses of tracking data, we found that even sublethal lead concentrations in blood (25 ppb, wet weight), can likely negatively affect movement behavior (flight height and movement rate) of freeranging scavenging Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos). Lead levels in liver of recovered post-mortem analyzed eagles suggested that sublethal exposure increases the risk of mortality in eagles. Such adverse effects on animals are probably common worldwide and across species, where game hunting with lead-based ammunition is widespread. Our study highlights lead exposure as a considerably more serious threat to wildlife conservation than previously realized and suggests implementation of bans of lead ammunition for hunting.

Lead poisoning of animals due to ingestion offragments from lead-based ammunition in carcasses and offalof shot wildlife is acknowledged globally and raises greatconcerns about potential behavioral effects leading to increasedmortality risks. Lead levels in blood were correlated withprogress of the moose hunting season. Based on analyses oftracking data, we found that even sublethal lead concentrationsin blood (25 ppb, wet weight), can likely negatively affectmovement behavior (flight height and movement rate) of freeranging scavenging Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos). Leadlevels in liver of recovered post-mortem analyzed eaglessuggested that sublethal exposure increases the risk ofmortality in eagles. Such adverse effects on animals are probably common worldwide and across species, where game huntingwith lead-based ammunition is widespread. Our study highlights lead exposure as a considerably more serious threat to wildlifeconservation than previously realized and suggests implementation of bans of lead ammunition for hunting.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been of environmental and health concern for more than half a century and have their own intergovernmental regulation through the Stockholm Convention, from 2001. One major concern is the nursing child's exposure to POPs, a concern that has led to a very large number of scientific studies on POPs in mothers' milk. The present review is a report on the assessment on worldwide spatial distributions of POPs and of their temporal trends. The data presented herein is a compilation based on scientific publications between 1995 and 2011. It is evident that the concentrations in mothers' milk depend on the use of pesticides and industrial chemicals defined as POPs. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and "dioxins" are higher in the more industrialized areas, Europe and Northern America, whereas pesticides are higher in Africa and Asia and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are reported in higher concentrations in the USA. POPs are consequently distributed to women in all parts of the world and are thus delivered to the nursing child. The review points out several major problems in the reporting of data, which are crucial to enable high quality comparisons. Even though the data set is large, the comparability is hampered by differences in reporting. In conclusion, much more detailed instructions are needed for reporting POPs in mothers' milk. Temporal trend data for POPs in mothers' milk is scarce and is of interest when studying longer time series. The only two countries with long temporal trend studies are Japan and Sweden. In most cases, the trends show decreasing concentrations of POPs in mothers' milk. However, hexabromocyclododecane is showing increasing temporal concentration trends in both Japan and Sweden.

The present study examined the presence of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) and selected precursors in the Baltic Sea abiotic environment and guillemot food web, and investigated the relative importance of precursors in food web accumulation of PFAAs. Sediment, water, zooplankton, herring, sprat, and guillemot eggs were analyzed for perfluoroalkane sulfonic acids (PFSAs; C4,6,8,10) and perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs; C6-15) along with six perfluoro-octane sulfonic acid (PFOS) precursors and 11 polyfluoroalkyl phosphoric acid diesters (diPAPs). FOSA, FOSAA and its methyl and ethyl derivatives (Me- and EtFOSAA), and 6:2/6:2 diPAP were detected in sediment and water. While FOSA and the three FOSAAs were detected in all biota, a total of nine diPAPs were only detected in zooplankton. Concentrations of PFOS precursors and diPAPs exceeded PFOS and PFCA concentrations, respectively, in zooplankton, but not in fish and guillemot eggs. Although PFOS precursors were present at all trophic levels, they appear to play a minor role in food web accumulation of PFOS based on PFOS precursor/PFOS ratios and PFOS and FOSA isomer patterns. The PFCA pattern in fish could not be explained by the intake pattern based on PFCAs and analyzed precursors, that is, diPAPs. Exposure to additional precursors might therefore be a dominant exposure pathway compared to direct PFCA exposure for fish.

This paper summarizes results from the monitoring of reproduction of white-tailed sea eagle in Sweden 1965–2006. Since 1989 the eagle population on the Swedish Baltic coast has been included in the National Environment Monitoring Program as an indicator species for potentially harmful chemicals. The percentage of successfully reproducing pairs and nestling brood size decreased in synchrony with rising concentrations of contaminants in the 1950s on into the 1970s. Mean productivity was 1.3 young per pair prior to 1950 and decreased to 0.3 in 1965–1985. Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethene (DDE) in eagle eggs decreased from a range of annual means in 1965–1974 of 600-1200 lg g1 (lipid weight) to 60–140 lg g1 in 1996–2005. Total polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations averaged above 1000 lg g1 into the early 1980s and remained in the range of 250–500 lg g1 in 1996–2005. Productivity began to improve when concentrations of DDE and PCBs dropped below approximately 300 and 800 lg g1, respectively. Brood size remains below the pre-1950level in one coastal region, indicating a possible impact from other contaminants. The power to detect significant trends under the program is presented and discussed: if white-tailed sea eagle reproduction had been monitored earlier during the 20th century, the negative impact of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT, source of DDE) would have been signaled as early as the 1950s in the Baltic Sea. The dramatic fall of white-tailed sea eagle reproduction under the influence of DDT and PCBs, and the subsequent rise following their ban, illustrates the usefulness of raptors like sea eagles as sentinels for environmental pollutants.

Patterns of lead and other trace metals were examined in 122 Eurasian eagle owls Bubo bubo found dead in Sweden in the period 1978–2013. Environmental lead (Pb) has decreased over recent decades from reduced anthropogenic emissions but mortality by Pb poisoning is still frequently reported for avian raptors and scavengers exposed to Pb ammunition. One objective here was to determine if Pb concentrations in a nocturnal non-scavenging raptor follow the general decline observed in other biota. Pb concentration in owl liver was significantly correlated with body weight, sex, latitude, longitude and season. Pb showed a significant decreasing trend towards north and west. Starved birds had significantly higher concentrations. Total Pb concentrations in liver averaged 0.179 μg g−1 dry weight (median 0.103) and decreased by 5.6% per year 1978–2013, or 5.3% after adjustment for confounding factors, similar to trends in other species. Among 14 other trace elements only antimony and arsenic showed decreasing trends. Lead isotope ratios 206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/207Pb increased from 1.138 and 2.408 in 1978–1985 to 1.170 and 2.435 in 2010–2013, respectively, demonstrating that the decreasing Pb concentration in eagle owl is related to the phase-out of leaded gasoline in Europe, where Pb additives had much lower isotope ratios than natural lead in Swedish soils. Only one incidence of suspected Pb poisoning (40.7 μg g−1 in liver) was observed indicating that poisoning from ingestion of metallic lead is rare (< 1%) in eagle owl in Sweden, in contrast to what has been reported for eagles.

Höga koncentrationer av PCB och DDE har konstaterats i ägg från fem havsörnshonor vid Norrlands-kusten. Möjliga förklaringar kan vara regional förorening, eller att vissa örnar lever på en högre nivå i en näringskedja där koncentrationerna ökar i varje steg. Denna rapport redovisar resultat från analyser av PCB, DDE, HCB och stabila isotoper (SI) (δ15N, δ13C) i muskel från fiskar (fyra lokaler), skarvar (tre lokaler), ägg från skarv (tre lokaler) och havsörn (två lokaler) i Västernorrlands län, och SI i ägg och fjädrar från havsörn i olika biotoper vid Östersjökusten. PCB, DDE, HCB i fiskar visade inte påtagligt högre koncentrationer än vad som rapporterats från Norrlandskusten i övrigt, men hade högre värden för PCB och HCB än vid Kvädöfjärden, Holmöarna och Örefjärden, som används som referenslokaler längs Östersjökusten inom den nationella miljöövervakningen. Koncentrationerna i muskel från skarvungar jämfört med muskel från abborre på lipidbasis var ca 3-7 ggr högre för DDE och upp till två resp. tre ggr högre för HCB och PCB (CB-153). I skarvägg jämfört med abborre var förhöjningen av koncentrationer 30-400 ggr för DDE, 30-140 ggr för PCB och 7-30 ggr för HCB. Koncentrationer av DDE och PCB (CB-153) i de högbelastade havsörnsäggen från Västernorrland var 20 respektive 40 ggr högre än i skarväggen. Hos havsörn ses en tydlig trend för både ägg och fjädrar för δ13C, som blir tyngre ju mer marin fyndplatsen antagits vara, men ingen trend för δ15N. En stegvis ökning ses för δ15N i muskelprover från olika fiskar till skarvungar och skarvägg, dock inte vidare till havsörnsägg, men däremot till havsörnsfjädrar. Avsaknaden av skillnad i δ15N mellan skarv- och havsörnsägg indikerar att de inte är jämförbara med avseende på trofiska nivåer. Statistiskt signifikanta men relativt svaga samband ses mellan koncentrationer av DDE och PCB och δ15N i hela materialet av havsörnsägg. Havsörn är på högre trofisk nivå än skarv men δ15N i örnäggen som läggs redan i mars avspeglar troligen ett inslag av däggdjurskadaver under vintern, medan fjädrarna avspeglar sommarfödan (mest fisk och fågel). Möjligheten kvarstår att högre miljögiftshalter i äggen hos vissa havsörnar kan bero på högre trofisk nivå men detta bör undersökas på fjädrar.

The reproduction of white-tailed sea eagles was monitoredin1964–1999 in 3 differently contaminated sub-populations: BalticSea coast (Bp), inland central Sweden (Ip) and Lapland (Lp). 249dead eggs from 205 clutches were obtained for analyses of DDEand PCBs and for eggshell measurements. A desiccation index(Di) value was calculated for each egg as a measure of waterloss through the shell. In the highly contaminated Bp, p,p´-DDEconcentrations in the eggs decreased continuously and 5-foldduring the study period and PCB concentrations decreased 3-fold from the mid 1980s. The PCB pattern changed slightly overtime towards more high-chlorinated congeners but the relativetoxicity of the PCB mixture, expressed as 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin equivalents (TEQ), remained constant and TEQcan be assumed to have decreased in a similar way as PCB overtime. Productivity (P), shell thickness (St), shell index (Si) and Diincreased over time in the Bp but no change in Di or productivityoccurred in the Lp, where residue concentrations were 5–8 timeslower. P of the Bp was not correlated to St or Si but was negatively correlated to Di, DDE and PCB. An S-shaped doseresponse relationship was indicated between P and DDE. After1988, when the PCB/DDE ratio was considerably higher thanpreviously, PCB but not DDE concentrations were significantlyhigher in eggs with dead embryos as compared to undevelopedeggs, implying lethal concentrations of PCB, and a LOEL of 320pg g–1 TEQ is suggested for embryo mortality. In a subset of 21eggs, representing productive and unproductive females, analyzed for a selection of coplanar PCB congeners, tris(4-chlorophenyl) methanol and bis(4-chlorophenyl) sulphone, there wasno evidence for a correlation between P and any of these compounds. A reduction in residue concentrations in old females didnot lead to increased P or improved Di-values, indicating aremaining effect from a previous, higher exposure to contaminants. The inability to reproduce included a high rate ofundeveloped eggs, indicating effects at a prezygotic stage. Pshowed the strongest correlation with Di, and Di was moststrongly correlated to DDE. Thus, the remaining effect of previousexposure resulted in a stronger correlation to the symptom (Di)rather than to the suggested causative agent (DDE). LOEL valuesfor depressed P were estimated at 120 µg g–1 DDE and 500 µgg–1 PCB (lipid basis). It is concluded that the major reason fordepressed P during the study period was DDE, but that effectsalso from PCB were largely concealed by the effects from DDE.

The production of sewage sludge is increasing in China but with unsafe disposal practices, causing potential risk to human health and the environment. Using literature from the past 30 years (N = 159), we conducted a meta-analysis of organic contaminants (OCs) in Chinese sludge. Most data were available from developed and populated regions, and no data were found for Tibet. Since 1987, 35 classes of chemicals consisting of 749 individual compounds and 1 mixture have been analyzed, in which antibiotics and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were the most targeted analytes. For 13 classes of principal OCs (defined as chemicals detected in over five studies) in sludge, the median (expressed in nanograms per gram dry weight) was the highest for phthalate esters (27 900), followed by alkylphenol polyethoxylates (12 000), synthetic musks (5800), antibiotics (4240), PAHs (3490), ultraviolet stabilizers (670), bisphenol analogs (160), organochlorine pesticides (110), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (100), pharmaceuticals (84), hormones (69), perfluorinated compounds (21), and polychlorinated biphenyls (15). Concentrations of PAHs in sludges collected between 1998 and 2012 showed a decreasing trend. Study findings suggest the need for a Chinese national sewage sludge survey to identify and regulate toxic OCs, ideally employing both targeted as well as nontargeted screening approaches.

Forty-four unhatched eggs from white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), collected in four regions inSweden in 1992–2005, were analysed for contents of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs),polybrominated biphenyl (PBB), hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) and naturally occurring methoxylatedpolybrominated diphenyl ethers (MeO-PBDEs). Two freshwater areas—Lapland in the arctic zone (LAP) andinland lakes in central and southern Sweden (INL), and two brackish marine areas in the Baltic Sea—thesouth Bothnian Sea (SB) and the Baltic Proper (BP)—were chosen for comparison of the concentrations andcongener distributions in white-tailed sea eagles with different diet and migratory patterns. The geometricmean (GM) concentrations (ng/g lipid weight (l.w.)) of ∑5PBDE (BDE-47, -99, -100, -153, and -154) were720 (LAP), 1500 (INL), 4 100 (SB) and 4 300 (BP), whereas BDE-209 was not detectable in any of the samples.The GM concentrations for HBCD content in LAP, INL, SB and BP were 60, 90, 150 and 140 ng/g l.w.,respectively, whereas the corresponding values for BB-153 were 20, 30, 100 and 120 ng/g l.w. In general, theeggs from all four regions demonstrated similar patterns of PBDE congeners, with concentrations indescending order of BDE-47, -100, -99, -153 and -154. The ∑3-MeO-BDEs (6-MeO-BDE47, 2′-MeO-BDE68,5-Cl-6-MeO-BDE47) for these same regions (as above) were 80, 40, 340 and 240 ng/g l.w., respectively.∑3-MeO-BDEs for LAP and INL (freshwaters) were significantly different, whereas those for SB and BP were not.The presence of MeO-PBDEs in all of the inland samples indicates that there is an as-yet-unidentified sourceof these compounds in the freshwater ecosystem. Between the two more contaminated subpopulationsfrom the Baltic Sea coast, SB showed significantly lower productivity than BP, but no correlation was foundbetween productivity and PBDE, PBB and HBCD at the concentrations found in this study.

Concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF), and dioxin-like non-ortho-PCBs were measured in white-tailed sea eagle (WTSE) eagle eggs collected along the Swedish coast of the Baltic Sea during the period 1992–2004. The eggs represent two different subpopulations with significantly different nestling brood sizes; the Baltic Proper (BP) with an approximately normal nestling brood size (1.62), and the south Bothnian Sea (sBS) with reduced nestling brood size (1.22) combined with asigni ficantly higher rate of dead eggs. The aim was to investigate if this difference in reproductive outcome was linked to differences in exposure to dioxin-like compounds. Three eggs collected in Greenland in 200 were included in the study to provide a reference sea eagle population outside of the Baltic Sea region. The concentrations of ΣPCDD, ΣPCDF and Σnon-ortho-PCB in the two subpopulations from the Baltic Sea (BS) region ranged from 0.41–4.1, 1.2–5.3 and 180–970 ng/g lipids, respectively, while in the Greenland population the ranges were 0.11–0.16, 0.22–0.33 and 57–83 ng/g lipid, respectively. 2,3,4,7,8-PCDF was the predominant congener in all areas and accounted for on average 31–49% of the total ΣPCDD/F concentrations. The total toxic equivalents (TEQ) in sBS WTSEs were higher (approximately 39 ng TEQ/g lipid) than reported in eggs for many other birds, and the major contributors to the TEQ in the Baltic Sea were the non-ortho-PCBs. A principal component analysis (PCA) showed a difference in congener pattern between the two Baltic regions that was statistically significant (Hotelling's T2 test). Wefound no significant differencesin the total TEQ between the two populations (sBS–BP) and thus no evidence was found linking the reproductive impairment in WTSE in sBS to the concentrations of PCDD/Fs or non-ortho-PCBs in the eggs.

Concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF), and dioxin-like non-ortho-PCBs were measured in white-tailed sea eagle (WTSE) eagle eggs collected along the Swedish coast of the Baltic Sea during the period 1992-2004. The eggs represent two different subpopulations with significantly different nestling brood sizes; the Baltic Proper (BP) with an approximately normal nestling brood size (1.62), and the south Bothnian Sea (sBS) with reduced nestling brood size (1.22) combined with a significantly higher rate of dead eggs. The aim was to investigate if this difference in reproductive outcome was linked to differences in exposure to dioxin-like compounds. Three eggs collected in Greenland in 2000 were included in the study to provide a reference sea eagle population outside of the Baltic Sea region. The concentrations of ∑PCDD, ∑PCDF and ∑non-ortho-PCB in the two subpopulations from the Baltic Sea (BS) region ranged from 0.41-4.1, 1.2-5.3 and 180-970 ng/g lipids, respectively, while in the Greenland population the ranges were 0.11-0.16, 0.22-0.33 and 57-83 ng/g lipid, respectively. 2,3,4,7,8-PCDF was the predominant congener in all areas and accounted for on average 31-49% of the total ∑PCDD/F concentrations. The total toxic equivalents (TEQ) in sBS WTSEs were higher (approximately 39 ng TEQ/g lipid) than reported in eggs for many other birds, and the major contributors to the TEQ in the Baltic Sea were the non-ortho-PCBs. A principal component analysis (PCA) showed a difference in congener pattern between the two Baltic regions that was statistically significant (Hotelling's T(2) test). We found no significant differences in the total TEQ between the two populations (sBS-BP) and thus no evidence was found linking the reproductive impairment in WTSE in sBS to the concentrations of PCDD/Fs or non-ortho-PCBs in the eggs.

Serum from 82 individual cats was analyzed for decabromobiphenyl (BB-209), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hydroxylated PBDEs (OH-PBDEs), and 2,4,6-TBP in order to study differences in body burden between healthy and sick cats diagnosed with Feline Hyperthyroidism (FH). Within the study group, 60 of these cats had a euthyroid (n = 23) or hyperthyroid (n = 37) status, all of which were used in the comparison. This study shows that hyperthyroid compared to euthyroid cats have higher serum concentrations for some of the investigated PBDEs (BDE-99, BDE-153, and BDE-183) and CB-153 on a fat weight basis. Further, it is intriguing, and beyond explanation, why the flame retardant BB-209 (discontinued in 2000) is present in all of the cat serum samples in concentrations similar to BDE-209. Median BDE-47/-99 ratios are 0.47 and 0.32 for healthy and euthyroid cats, respectively, which differs significantly from Swedes, where the ratio is 3.5. Another important finding is the occurrence of very low levels or the absence of hydroxylated PBDE metabolites in the cats. In addition, the major OH-PBDE, 6-OH-BDE47, is likely of natural origin, probably ingested via cat food. The statistics indicate an association between elevated PBDE concentrations in the cats and FH.

Within the Swedish National Monitoring Programme for Contaminants in Freshwater Biota, perch, pike and Arctic char are being analysed from 32 lakes distributed all over Sweden. One of the main objectives of the monitoring has been to detect temporal trends in different areas and for different contaminants. However, the measured concentrations in biota can be affected by biological factors such as age, length, trophic position (TP), fat or dry weight content. A change in one or several of these variables over time, or even among specimens taken within the same year, is likely to result in an increased variation of the measured concentrations and hence in a lower chance of detecting a trend. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if an adjustment of contaminant time trends by primarily stable isotopes, but also other confounding factors can:  A) reduce the individual and between-year variation and hence B) improve the likelihood of detecting temporal trends in time series for metals and organic contaminants. The study revealed an improvement in the likelihood of detecting a contaminant trend after adjustment of the data for almost all lakes and for all tested substances. For some lakes and substances, this improvement was substantial. Age seems to be an important confounding factor for metals and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. For lipophilic substances, fat content also appears to be an important factor in some lakes together with adjustments for carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios (d¹³C and d¹⁵N), which all reduced the variation in contaminant data. This suggests that there is a benefit of adjusting data on a regular basis in contaminant monitoring programmes in the future.

The environmental and human health concerns for organohalogen contaminants (OHCs) extend beyond the 23 persistent organic pollutants (POPs) regulated by the Stockholm Convention. The current, intense industrial production and use of chemicals in China and their bioaccumulation makes Chinese wildlife highly suitable for the assessment of legacy, novel and emerging environmental pollutants. In the present study, six species of amphibians, fish and birds were sampled from paddy fields in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) were screened for OHCs. Some extensive contamination was found, both regarding number and concentrations of the analytes, among the species assessed. High concentrations of chlorinated paraffins were found in the snake, Short-tailed mamushi (range of 200-340 μg g(-)(1)lw), Peregrine falcon (8-59 μg g(-1)lw) and Asiatic toad (97 μg g(-)(1)lw). Novel contaminants and patterns were observed; octaCBs to decaCB made up 20% of the total polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) content in the samples and new OHCs, substituted with 5-8 chlorines, were found but are not yet structurally confirmed. In addition, Dechlorane 602 (DDC-DBF) and numerous other OHCs (DDTs, hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hexbromocyclododecane (HBCDD), chlordane, heptachlor, endosulfan and Mirex) were found in all species analyzed. These data show extensive chemical contamination of wildlife in the YRD with a suite of OHCs with both known and unknown toxicities, calling for further in-depth studies.

Contamination of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated diphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hydroxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (OH-PBDEs) and their methylated counterparts (MeO-PBDEs) were determined in Black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) and Whiskered tern (Chlidonias hybrida) from two drinking water sources, e.g. Tianmu lake and East Tai lake in Yangtze River Delta, China. A novel PCBs contamination pattern was detected, including 11% and 6.9% highly chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs with eight to ten chlorines) in relation to total PCB concentrations in the Black-crowned night heron and Whiskered tern eggs, respectively. The predominating OCPs detected in the present study were 4,4'-DDE, with concentration range 280-650 ng g(-1) lw in Black-crowned night heron and 240-480 ng g(-1) lw in Whiskered tern, followed by β-HCH and Mirex. 6-MeO-BDE-90 and 6-MeO-BDE-99 are the two predominant congeners of MeO-PBDEs whereas 6-OH-BDE-47 contributes mostly to the OH-PBDEs in both species. Contamination level was considered as median or low level compared global data.