Trace Elements in the Fur of Bats (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) from Ontario and Quebec, Canada

• Published in: Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology 2001-06, Vol.66 (6), p.699-706
• Main Authors: Hickey, MBC, Fenton, M B, MacDonald, K C, Soulliere, C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chiroptera; fur
• ISSN: 0007-4861
• DOI: 10.1007/s00128-001-0065-3

A large literature reporting the concentrations and effects of anthropogenic contaminants on wildlife has developed over the past several decades. These studies have documented geographic and temporal variation in the concentrations of contaminants, as well as their associated health effects in a wide range of species. Species at the tops of food chains, especially birds of prey, have received a great deal of attention because they accumulate high concentrations of mercury and fat-soluble contaminants like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organic compounds. Bats are among the most common vertebrates in many urban and agricultural settings and they accumulate contaminants. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the concentrations of anthropogenic contaminants in bats and other insectivores compared to other taxa. Most of the existing data on contaminant concenrations in bats have focused on organic compounds and to our knowledge, there are no published data on the concentrations of metals in Canadian bats. Five features of their life histories and biology make bats obvious species of interest with respect to contaminants. First, bats are long-lived, small and mobile. Second, bats typically consume between 40% and 100% of their body mass in prey each night. Third, some species feed heavily on emerging insects such as Trichoptera that spend their larval stages in sediments where contaminants from past industrial activities may have accumulated. Fourth, bats often coexist with humans in urban and agricultural settings, potentially exposing them to contaminants. Fifth, aquatic insects and bats in urban environments may provide a pathway for the movement of contaminants from aquatic sediments to terrestrial ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to assess variation in the concentrations 24 elements including mercury and several other metal contaminants in the fur of bats captured at sites in eastern Ontario and adjacent Quebec, Canada.