Comparison of produced water toxicity to Arctic and temperate species.

Produced water is the main discharge stream from oil and gas production. For offshore activities this water is usually discharged to the marine environment. Produced water contains traces of hydrocarbons such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as well as alkylphenols, which are relatively resistant to biodegradation and have been reported to cause adverse effects to marine organisms in laboratory studies. For management of produced water, risk-based tools have been developed using toxicity data for mainly non-Arctic species. Reliable risk assessment approaches for Arctic environments are requested to manage potential impacts of produced water associated with increased oil and gas activities in Arctic regions. In order to assess the applicability of existing risk tools for Arctic areas, basic knowledge on the sensitivity of Arctic species has to be developed. In the present study, acute and chronic toxicity of artificial produced water for 6 Arctic and 6 temperate species was experimentally tested and evaluated. The hazardous concentrations affecting 5% and 50% of the species were calculated from species sensitivity distribution curves. Hazardous concentrations were compared to elucidate whether temperate toxicity data used in risk assessment are sufficiently representative for Arctic species. From the study it can be concluded that hazardous concentration derived from individual species' toxicity data of temperate and Arctic species are comparable. However, the manner in which Arctic and non-Arctic populations and communities respond to exposure levels above established thresholds remains to be investigated. Hence, responses at higher levels of biological organization should be studied to reveal potential differences in sensitivities to produced water between Arctic and non-Arctic ecosystems.

Efficacy of eastern equine encephalitis immunization in whooping cranes.

An epizootic of eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC), Laurel, Maryland (USA), in 1989 provided an opportunity to determine if EEE immunization protected whooping cranes (Grus americana). Based on seroconversion of 31% of sympatric hatch-year sandhill cranes, Grus canadensis, and a previous 35% case fatality rate in whooping cranes, 17 (37%) of the 46 susceptible whooping cranes should have been exposed to virus and six should have died. As there were no deaths in these birds, the EEE vaccination program appeared to be efficacious in this whooping crane population.

Failure of tetracycline as a biomarker in batch-marking juvenile frogs.

Recent widespread amphibian declines call for better techniques to assess population dynamics. Tetracycline as a biomarker in capture-recapture studies is one technique used successfully in fish, reptiles, and mammals. A two-phase experimental study was conducted to evaluate tetracycline as a biomarker in green frogs (Rana clamitans) and pickerel frogs (Rana palustris). In the first experimental phase tadpoles were exposed to water containing either 250 mg/l or 500 mg/l tetracycline for a period of 24 hr. During the second phase, juvenile frogs were exposed to tetracycline in water at 500 mg/l or given injections of tetracycline at the dose rate of 100 mg/kg body weight. At selected times several weeks later, under tricaine methanesulfonate anesthesia, a toe was surgically excised from each animal, sectioned and viewed under an ultraviolet microscope. No significant differences were found between the various treatments and control animals (untreated). Therefore, the use of tetracycline as a biomarker in anurans using these techniques is not recommended.

Disseminated cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in a ferret.

A 3-year-old male ferret was admitted with ulcerated nodules and fistulous draining tracts on the pads and digits of the right front and left hind feet. Proteus sp and Escherichia coli were isolated from the exudate. Histologic examinations revealed that all skin lesions were associated with an underlying squamous cell carcinoma. Surgical removal was attempted, followed by chemotherapy. Regression of remaining lesions was noted before discharge; however, the ferret died 5 days later and was not available for necropsy.

Eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus and Culiseta melanura activity at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 1985-90.

Mosquito population densities, virus isolations and seroconversion in sentinel quail were used to monitor eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus (EEE) activity at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, Maryland, from 1985 through 1990. A dramatic increase in the number of Culiseta melanura collected in 1989, as compared with the 3 previous years, was associated with virus isolations from this species (5/75 pools; n = 542 mosquitoes) and with seroconversion in sentinel quail (4/22 birds positive). This was the first detection of EEE virus activity in this area since a 1984 EEE outbreak killed 7 whooping cranes.

Toxicity data for modeling impacts of oil components in an Arctic ecosystem.

Ecological impact assessment modeling systems are valuable support tools for managing impacts from commercial activities on marine habitats and species. The inclusion of toxic effects modeling in these systems is predicated on the availability and quality of ecotoxicology data. Here we report on a data gathering exercise to obtain toxic effects data on oil compounds for a selection of cold-water marine species of fish and plankton associated with the Barents Sea ecosystem. Effects data were collated from historical and contemporary literature resources for the endpoints mortality, development, growth, bioaccumulation and reproduction. Evaluating the utility and applicability of these data for modeling, we find that data coverage is limited to a sub-set of the required endpoints. There is a need for new experimental studies for zooplankton focused on the endpoints development and bioaccumulation and for larvae and juvenile fish focused on growth and development.

Organochlorine and metal contaminant exposure and effects in hatching black-crowned night herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) in Delaware Bay.

Pea Patch Island in Delaware Bay is the site of the largest heronry north of Florida. From 1989-93, the population of nine species of wading birds numbered approximately 12,000 pairs, but has recently declined to about 7,000 pairs. Because Delaware Bay is a major shipping channel and receives anthropogenic releases of toxic substances from agricultural, industrial, and municipal point and nonpoint sources, contaminant exposure and effects to the heronry have been an ongoing concern. In 1997, pipping (early hatching stage) black-crowned night herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) were collected from separate nests at Pea Patch Island and from a coastal reference site, Middle Island in Rehoboth Bay, Delaware. There was no evidence of malformations or hepatic histopathological lesions in embryos, and their body and liver weights did not differ between sites. Biomarkers of petroleum hydrocarbons, polyhalogenated contaminant, and metal exposure (cytochrome P450 induction and oxidative stress responses) did not differ (p > 0.05) between sites, although activities of benzyloxy-O-dealkylase and ethoxyresorufin-O-dealkylase were somewhat elevated in 3 of the 15 embryos collected from Pea Patch Island. Concentrations of 21 organochlorine pesticides and metabolites were relatively low at both sites, with p,p'-DDE values well below the threshold associated with eggshell thinning. Although total PCB concentration was modestly elevated (p < 0.05) in Pea Patch Island heron embryos, levels of arylhydrocarbon receptor-active PCB congeners, polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and dibenzofurans, and toxic equivalents were low and did not differ between sites. Concentrations of Cd and Mn in pipping embryos from Pea Patch Island were slightly greater (p < 0.05) than values observed in Middle Island embryos, but levels of these and the other metals and metalloids (e.g., Hg and Se) were below values associated with toxicity. In conclusion, it seems unlikely that chlorinated hydrocarbon and metal contaminant exposure constitutes a direct threat to the reproductive success of black-crowned night herons at Pea Patch Island. However, low-level exposure to these contaminants may constitute one of many stressors that in combination could adversely affect the stability of the wading bird population at this large heronry.

Mid-infrared w quantum-well lasers for noncryogenic continuous-wave operation.

We review the recent progress of electrically injected and optically pumped mid-IR lasers based on antimonide quantum wells with the type II W configuration. W quantum-well diodes have achieved cw operation up to 195 K at lambda = 3.25 mum. Optically pumped devices that employ the diamond pressure bond heat sink have reached 290 K at 3 mum and 210 K at 6 mum. Pulsed power conversion efficiencies of up to 7% at 220 K have been attained by use of an optical pumping injection cavity approach, in which an etalon cavity for the pump beam significantly enhances its absorptance. The angled-grating distributed-feedback configuration has been used to obtain near-diffraction-limited output for an optical pumping stripe width of 50 mum.