POPS IN MARINE MAMMALS: LEVELS AND EFFECTS PREDICTED BIOACCUMULATION OF PCBs AND TOXAPHENE IN BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS (TURSIOPS TRUNCATUS): THE CONTRIBUTION OF CONTAMINATED PREY

Residues of two organochlorines (OCs) -Aroclor 1268 (a highly chlorinated PCB formulation) and toxaphene (a DDT-replacement pesticide) -are major persistent contaminants in St. Simons Sound near Brunswick, Georgia, USA. Although studies have recently documented OC levels in Brunswick area fish that are routinely consumed by humans, little is known about organochlorine body burdens in resident marine mammals. Sub-populations of the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), an abundant odontocete of the coastal mid-south Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico regions, have recently been shown to exhibit a limited home range and site fidelity in a northern Florida estuary, underscoring the need to assess the impact of OCs in individuals exposed via their natural prey (i.e. contaminated fish).