College of Agriculture & Natural Resources

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/1598

The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.

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    Survival and biochemical health indicators of Elliptio complanata deployed in Anacostia River tributaries for monitoring of persistent organic contaminants
    (2019) Harrison, Rachel Marie; Yonkos, Lance T; Environmental Science and Technology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The Anacostia River is one of three regions-of-concern in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, and organochlorine pesticides are known to accumulate in sediment and biota within portions of the Anacostia system, but on-going contaminant sources are poorly understood. The current study investigates relative contaminant burdens in the freshwater mussel Elliptio complanata deployed in six non-tidal Anacostia tributaries and an out-of-system reference site. Mussels acquire contaminants during feeding and are a useful tool for monitoring POPs transporting through the system. Mussels were effective at identifying sites with high contaminant loads. The study also investigates the suitability of Anacostia tributaries for reintroduction of E. complanata to increase benthic community diversity and potentially improve water quality. Survival and growth during deployment was very good for both sampling seasons. Biochemical health parameters of deployed mussels suggest that conditions may be suitable for mussel reintroduction.
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    Biomonitoring organochlorine compounds using bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) in Voyageur's National Park 2011-2017 and developing new biomonitoring techniques
    (2018) Eberius, Rachel Ann; Bowerman, William W; Environmental Science and Technology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Wildlife are used to monitor the presence and persistence of legacy organochlorine contaminants in the environment. In this study, bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) were utilized as an indicator of exposure to organochlorine compounds at Voyageur’s National Park, Minnesota from 2011-2017. This demonstrated decreasing concentration trends and a lack of recent inputs of organochlorine compounds. However, the use of organochlorine compounds continues in other parts of the world. Therefore, a technique for using solid phase extraction to quantify organochlorine analytes in avian plasma was developed in order to facilitate international biomonitoring of these compounds. Using this method, organochlorine compounds are extracted from plasma and stored within extraction cartridges during transport from collection site to analysis site. This has important implications for international wildlife biomonitoring. If organochlorine analytes are separated from their matrix at the site of collection, sensitive or hazardous biological materials do not need to be transported or stored.