Tissue distribution and health risk of trace elements in East Asian finless porpoises

Abstract We investigated the tissue distribution, trophic transfer, and ecological risk of 13 trace elements in 26 East Asian finless porpoises (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis sunameri), an endangered species found in the Liaodong Bay and the north Yellow Sea. All the investigated trace elements were detected in the tissue and food web of the East Asian finless porpoises. The concentrations of the potentially toxic elements were 2.37 × 10−5 – 754 mg kg−1 dry weight (dw) in stranded porpoises and 0.01–159 mg kg−1 dw in their food web. Tissue-specific distribution of the trace elements generally ranked as: liver > kidney > heart > lung > muscle. Zn was the dominant contaminant in the five investigated tissues. Significant positive correlations were found between body length or age and some trace elements, especially Cd. Adults (≥2 years old) presented higher concentrations of most of the trace elements than juveniles (