Mary D. Balcer

Introduction of the Ponto-Caspian Bloody-red Mysid Hemimysis anomala into the Lake Michigan Basin

ABSTRACT Hemimysis anomala G.O. Sars, 1907, a mysid species native to the Ponto-Caspian region, was discovered during fall 2006 in the Lake Michigan basin. Large numbers of individuals formed aggregations (averaging 1,540 ± 333 individuals/m2) in a shallow docking basin connected to the channel linking Lake Michigan and Muskegon Lake. The population included females (63%), males (35%), and juveniles (2%). The global invasion pattern in H. anomala is similar to that in another Ponto-Caspian peracarid crustacean, Echinogammarus ischnus. As with E. ischnus, the expansion of H. anomala in North America is anticipated.

Integrated assessment of contaminated sediments in the lower Fox River and Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Samples of sediment and biota were collected from sites in the lower Fox River and southern Green Bay to determine existing or potential impacts of sediment-associated contaminants on different ecosystem components of this Great Lakes area of concern. Evaluation of benthos revealed a relatively depauperate community, particularly at the lower Fox River sites. Sediment pore water and bulk sediments from several lower Fox River sites were toxic to a number of test species including Pimephales promelas, Ceriodaphnia dubia, Hexagenia limbata, Selenastrum capricornutum, and Photobacterium phosphorum. An important component of the observed toxicity appeared to be due to ammonia. Evaluation of three bullhead (Ictalurus) species from the lower Fox River revealed an absence of preneoplastic or neoplastic liver lesions, and the Salmonella typhimurium bioassay indicated relatively little mutagenicity in sediment extracts. Apparent adverse reproductive effects were noted in two species of birds nesting along the lower Fox River and on a confined disposal facility for sediments near the mouth of the river, and there were measurable concentrations of potentially toxic 2,3,7,8-substituted polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and planar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) both in the birds and in sediments from several of the study sites. Based on toxic equivalency factors and the results of an in vitro bioassay with H4IIE rat hepatoma cells, it appeared that the majority of potential toxicity of the PCB/PCDF/PCDD mixture in biota from the lower Fox River/Green Bay system was due to the planar PCBs. The results of these studies are discussed in terms of an integrated assessment focused on providing data for remedial action planning.

Equilibrium partitioning as the basis for an integrated laboratory and field assessment of the impacts of DDT, DDE and DDD in sediments

Many of the most biologically productive portions of streams are backwater areas which support large populations of benthic macroinvertebrates. The sediments in these locations and their associated macroinvertebrate communities are frequently subjected to chemical inputs and physical perturbations. Historically, assessment of the effects of contaminants in sediments have emphasized chemical analyses and either laboratory toxicity tests or in-stream monitoring of benthic macroinvertebrate community structure. However, combining the chemical and biological approaches provides a more powerful assessment technique. Such an integrated approach, combining laboratory water-only and sediment toxicity tests with Hyalella azteca and Chironomus tentans, field surveys of benthic macroinvertebrate community structure and evaluation of chemical data using equilibrium partitioning theory was used to assess the effects of DDT, DDE and DDD (collectively termed DDTR) in the sediments of the Huntsville Spring Branch-- Indian Creek (HSB--IC) stream system in the southeastern USA. Benthic macroinvertebrate populations in the HSB--IC system still appear to be adversely affected by DDTR residues within the sediments even though DDT discharges to the stream were stopped over 20 years ago and a major remediation project was completed in the late 1980s. This conclusion is based on a weight of evidence approach which incorporates (1) the observed sediment toxicity to C. tentans and H. azteca in laboratory tests, (2) the identification of DDTR as the likely cause of effects observed during laboratory toxicity tests, (3) the absence of appropriate sensitive species from groups such as the Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera and Amphipoda, (4) the presence of reduced numbers of both total individuals and species of chironomids and oligochaetes relative to nearby streams not contaminated by DDTR and (5) the observed distribution of benthic macroinvertebrates in relation to organic carbon-normalized concentrations of DDTR and equilibrium partitioning-based predicted sediment toxic units of DDTR