易胜博官网

A harmful neurotoxin produced by cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae blooms, in 易胜博官网鈥檚 fresh water lakes, which has been linked to ALS in humans, may be contributing to the decline of the state鈥檚 Common Loon population, according to research from the听听at the University of 易胜博官网.

NH Agricultural Experiment Station researcher Jim Haney, professor of biological sciences, and his student research team have detected high levels of liver and nerve toxins in 易胜博官网 loon chicks. Preliminary results indicate the nerve toxin Beta methylamino-L-alanine, or BMAA, is being biomagnified many times as it passes up the food chain, whereas the liver toxin becomes less concentrated or 鈥渂iodilutes鈥� at the higher food levels.

鈥淲e are examining whether this nerve toxin may be contributing to the recent disappearance of the Common Loon from certain 易胜博官网 lakes. Levels of BMAA, a toxin suspected to be related to human neurological disorders such as ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig鈥檚 disease, were highest in the chick feathers. This suggests these birds have been exposed to relatively high concentrations in fish they were fed by their parents,鈥� said Haney, who also directs the 易胜博官网 Center for Freshwater Biology.

The project is part of a larger study听听started in 2013 by the Biodiversity Research Institute of Portland, Maine, with support from the Ricketts Conservation Foundation. The study focuses on the health of loons in four regions of the United States: Northeast, Midwest, Western Rockies, and the Northwest.

易胜博官网 and the Biodiversity Research Institute began collaborating in 2014 to examine the possible role of cyanobacteria toxins as a cause for the decline of loon populations. 鈥淲e know very little about how these toxins move within the lake and how they move from the lake into people. Because loons are near the top of the lake food chain and depend heavily on fish, loon chicks may represent 鈥榤ine canaries鈥� of the lakes,鈥� Haney said.

Since these toxins have never been studied in loons, 易胜博官网 researchers have been developing new techniques to measure the amount of toxins in the blood and feathers of the loon chicks. Further testing of plankton, which produce the toxins, and loons will be conducted this summer in more than 35 fresh water lakes with nesting loon populations. Concentrations of these 鈥渃yanotoxins鈥� in loons will be compared with other health parameters collected, such as body weight, and levels of mercury, lead, and blood parasites in the blood.

In addition, researchers plan to gather more water quality data to determine why certain lakes have such high levels of toxic cyanobacteria and the features of the lake food webs, such as the species of plankton and fish present that allow them to biomagnify these toxins so efficiently. They also plan to conduct detailed studies in collaboration with the Loon Preservation Committee of Moultonboro on Granite State lakes to determine if cyanobacteria toxins may be related to the loss of loon populations, such as specific nesting sites at Squam Lakes in Holderness.

According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the range of the North American Common Loon has retracted in New England, though loon populations have rebounded in the region thanks to restoration efforts. Common Loons require clear, unpolluted lakes, and may be harmed by pollution. Their diet consists of mostly fish, particularly perch and sunfish. If fish are scarce or water is too murky for fishing, they will catch crustaceans, snails, leeches and even aquatic insect larvae.

To learn more about cyanobacteria blooms, visit the 易胜博官网 Center for Freshwater Biology at听. A short video about cyanobacteria in 易胜博官网 lakes is available at听.

This material is based upon work supported by the NH Agricultural Experiment Station, through joint funding of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 227004, and the state of 易胜博官网.

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