Skip to content
University of Maryland LibrariesDigital Repository at the University of Maryland
    • Login
    View Item 
    •   DRUM
    • Theses and Dissertations from UMD
    • UMD Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    •   DRUM
    • Theses and Dissertations from UMD
    • UMD Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    THE IMPACT OF SEDIMENT RESUSPENSION ON MERCURY CYCLING AND THE BIOACCUMULATION OF METHYLMERCURY INTO BENTHIC AND PELAGIC ORGANISMS

    Thumbnail
    View/Open
    umi-umd-2781.pdf (2.172Mb)
    No. of downloads: 1755

    Date
    2005-08-10
    Author
    Bergeron, Christine Marie
    Advisor
    Mason, Robert P
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Abstract
    Sediment resuspension provides a potential mechanism for transferring Hg and MeHg from the sediment to filter feeding organisms and the pelagic food chain, and has been found to enhance Hg methylation. The study objective was to determine the effect of resuspension and clam density on Hg cycling and MeHg bioaccumulation into clams and zooplankton. Two, month-long mesocosm experiments were conducted. The Clam/No Clam Experiment compared resupension with clams (HDC1) versus without clams (NC). The Clam Density Experiment compared resuspension with a high-density population of clams (HDC2) compared with a low-density population of clams (LDC). In addition, a Hg stable isotope was added as a tracer to examine the complex trophic dynamics in the mesocosms. Results from the experiments suggest that clam density did not affect MeHg bioaccumulation into biota over the duration of the experiments. However, high clam density increased net production of MeHg in the water column.
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/1903/2985
    Collections
    • Biology Theses and Dissertations
    • MEES Theses and Dissertations
    • UMD Theses and Dissertations

    DRUM is brought to you by the University of Maryland Libraries
    University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-7011 (301)314-1328.
    Please send us your comments.
    Web Accessibility
     

     

    Browse

    All of DRUMCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

    My Account

    LoginRegister
    Pages
    About DRUMAbout Download Statistics

    DRUM is brought to you by the University of Maryland Libraries
    University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-7011 (301)314-1328.
    Please send us your comments.
    Web Accessibility