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Mateo, R.; Millan, J.; Rodriguez-Estival, J.; Camarero, P.R.; Palomares, F.; Ortiz-Santaliestra, M.E.
Levels of organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in the critically endangered Iberian lynx and other sympatric carnivores in Spain
2012  Chemosphere (86): 691-700

Accumulation of organochlorine compounds is well studied in aquatic food chains whereas little information is available from terrestrial food chains. This study presents data of organochlorine levels in tissue and plasma samples of 15 critically endangered Iberian lynx (_Lynx pardinus_) and other 55 wild carnivores belonging to five species from three natural areas of Spain (Do¤ana National Park, Sierra Morena and Lozoya River) and explores their relationship with species diet. The Iberian lynx, with a diet based on the consumption of rabbit, had lower PCB levels (geometric means, plasma: <0.01 ng mL-1, liver: 0.4 ng g-1 wet weight, fat: 87 ng g-1 lipid weight) than other carnivores with more anthropic and opportunistic foraging behavior, such as the red fox (_Vulpes vulpes_; plasma: 1.11 ng mL-1, liver: 459 ng g-1, fat: 1984 ng g-1), or with diets including reptiles at higher proportion, such as the Egyptian mongoose (_Herpestes ichneumon_; plasma: 7.15 ng mL-1, liver: 216 ng g-1, fat: 540 ng g-1), or the common genet (_Genetta genetta_; liver: 466 ng g-1, fat: 3854 ng g-1). Chlorinated pesticides showed interspecific variations similar to PCBs. Organochlorine levels have declined since the 80s in carnivores from Do¤ana National Park, but PCB levels are still of concern in Eurasian otters (_Lutra lutra_; liver: 3873-5426 ng g-1) from the industrialized region of Madrid.

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