Connecting the dots: determining temporal mercury flux via aquatic insects to avian predators in Acadia National Park
PI: Nelson, Sarah (Forest Resources, UMaine)
Sector: Marine Science
Partners: US Geological Survey, National Park Service
Abstract: Mercury (Hg) is a globally distributed contaminant that biomagnifies through food webs and is highly toxic to fish, wildlife, and people, leading to fish consumption advisories in every US state. As a result of its widespread distribution, Hg is a serious concern for protected areas such as many national parks in the US, including Acadia National Park. The Dragonfly Mercury Project (DMP) enlists park staff or community partners who lead teams of citizen scientists in collection of dragonfly larvae for analysis in national parks, providing data for national-scale assessment of this neurotoxic pollutant. Although spatially extensive, the scope of the current research does not allow us to answer a key question for resource managers and human consumers: Do elevated concentrations of Hg in dragonfly larvae translate into their foodwebs and does this vary in time? This proposed research would broaden the temporal dimension of this research, determine the effects of life-history on concentrations in dragonfly larvae, and provide the opportunity to link with a project investigating bird diets and macroinvertebrates at Acadia National Park, which is scheduled to begin in summer 2018.