Profiles of environmental contaminants in hawksbill turtle egg yolks reflect local to distant pollution sources among nesting beaches in the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico.

ABSTRACT

Knowledge of spatial variation in pollutant profiles among sea turtle nesting locations is limited. This poses challenges in identifying processes shaping this variability and sets constraints to the conservation management of sea turtles and their use as biomonitoring tools for environmental pollutants. We aimed to increase understanding of the spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), organochlorine pesticide (OCP) and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds among nesting beaches. We link the spatial variation to turtle migration patterns and the persistence of these pollutants. Specifically, using gas chromatography, we confirmed maternal transfer of a large number of compounds (n = 68 out of 69) among 104 eggs collected from 21 nests across three nesting beaches within the Yucatán Peninsula, one of the world's most important rookeries for hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata). High variation in PAH profiles was observed among beaches, using multivariate correspondence analysis and univariate Peto-Prentice tests, reflecting local acquisition during recent migration movements. Diagnostic PAH ratios reflected petrogenic origins in Celestún, the beach closest to petroleum industries in the Gulf of Mexico. By contrast, pollution profiles of OCPs and PCBs showed high similarity among beaches, reflecting the long-term accumulation of these pollutants at regional scales. Therefore, spatial planning of protected areas and the use of turtle eggs in biomonitoring needs to account for the spatial variation in pollution profiles among nesting beaches.