Subsurface seawater methylmercury maximum explains biotic mercury concentrations in the Canadian Arctic

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dc.contributor.authorWang, Kang
dc.contributor.authorMunson, Kathleen M.
dc.contributor.authorBeaupré-Laperrière, Alexis
dc.contributor.authorMucci, Alfonso
dc.contributor.authorMacdonald, Robie W.
dc.contributor.authorWang, Feiyue
dc.date.accessioned2020-07-09T21:10:42Z
dc.date.available2020-07-09T21:10:42Z
dc.date.issued2018-09-27
dc.date.submitted2020-07-09T21:10:42Zen_US
dc.description.abstractMercury (Hg) is a contaminant of major concern in Arctic marine ecosystems. Decades of Hg observations in marine biota from across the Canadian Arctic show generally higher concentrations in the west than in the east. Various hypotheses have attributed this longitudinal biotic Hg gradient to regional differences in atmospheric or terrestrial inputs of inorganic Hg, but it is methylmercury (MeHg) that accumulates and biomagnifies in marine biota. Here, we present high-resolution vertical profiles of total Hg and MeHg in seawater along a transect from the Canada Basin, across the Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) and Baffin Bay, and into the Labrador Sea. Total Hg concentrations are lower in the western Arctic, opposing the biotic Hg distributions. In contrast, MeHg exhibits a distinctive subsurface maximum at shallow depths of 100–300m, with its peak concentration decreasing eastwards. As this subsurface MeHg maximum lies within the habitat of zooplankton and other lower trophic-level biota, biological uptake of subsurface MeHg and subsequent biomagnification readily explains the biotic Hg concentration gradient. Understanding the risk of MeHg to the Arctic marine ecosystem and Indigenous Peoples will thus require an elucidation of the processes that generate and maintain this subsurface MeHg maximum.en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipNatural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada, ArcticNet, the Canadian Arctic GEOTRACES program, and the Canada Research Chairs Program.en_US
dc.identifier.citationWang, K., Munson, K., Beaupré-Laperrière, A., Mucci, A. Macdonald, R.W., & F. Wang. Subsurface seawater methylmercury maximum explains biotic mercury concentrations in the Canadian Arctic. Sci Rep 8, 14465 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-32760-0en_US
dc.identifier.doi10.1038/s41598-018-32760-0
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1993/34764
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherNatureen_US
dc.rightsopen accessen_US
dc.subjectmethylmercuryen_US
dc.subjectArcticen_US
dc.subjectmercuryen_US
dc.subjectmarine ecosystemen_US
dc.subjectbiomagnificationen_US
dc.titleSubsurface seawater methylmercury maximum explains biotic mercury concentrations in the Canadian Arcticen_US
dc.typeTechnical Reporten_US
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