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The soft-shell clam Mya arenaria was adversely affected by exposure to pesticides registered for use in forest management, according to a study published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.
The article was written by researchers at Portland State University and the U.S. Geological Survey. They exposed clams to pesticides at concentrations that might occur in their natural estuarine ecosystems due to the overflow from upstream applications.
The researchers monitored the effects of the pesticides individually and in combination on the soft-shell clams' shell growth, condition, feeding rates, and mortality. The data shows that exposure to some chemicals caused a high mortality rate, both individually and in combination, which was surprising due to the low concentrations we used in the study. The research team found compounds in the tissue of the shellfish that reduced clam condition and feeding.
The study's authors said that the findings underscore the need for a more comprehensive understanding of how pesticides used upstream of estuarine and marine ecosystems impact aquatic species and ecology. Three of the pesticides examined in the study are used by forest managers to control the expansion of unwanted species that threaten forest lands, and some of them are also used in farming Christmas trees and managing vegetation in public rights-of-way. Runoff and spray drift take pesticides into waterways that lead to coastal transition zones.
The study looked at the effects of pesticide exposure on the environment. The long-term effects of these compounds in combination and at levels that our lab has detected in coastal transition zone ecosystems is critical to our understanding of how forest management practices may impact these culturally and economically important ecosystems. This is an important data gap to fill as research on these compounds' toxicity typically focuses on individual compound effects at high concentrations to determine lethality, which, while necessary for understanding compound toxicity, can miss sub-lethal effects that can have long term impacts on these systems.
The article was co-authored by a graduate student at Portland State University and four faculty members. The U.S Geological Survey also contributed. The research was funded by the Oregon Sea Grant.
The silence of the clams is a study about pesticides being a factor in soft-shell clams. The article is titled "Scitotenv.2021.152053."
Science of the Total Environment is a journal.
Long-term exposure to pesticides has a negative effect on shellfish.
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