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Brown and brook trout populations in the Tatra Mountain lakes (Slovakia, Poland) and contamination by long-range transported pollutants

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Abstract

Fish living in the extreme conditions of the Tatra Mountain lakes were evaluated from a biological point of view as well as an important biomarker of long-range transported pollutants. In Veľké Hincovo pleso and in Morskie Oko, specimens of brown trout (Salmo trutta) of extraordinarily advanced age were found (ages of 18+ and 17+ years, respectively). The capture of a 17+ year-old brown trout in Morskie Oko (2400 g, 540 mm) indicated the presence of the so-called ferox life strategy. The growth of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) was faster than the growth of brown trout in the younger year classes, and while the growth of brook trout stopped after the age of 5+, the growth of brown trout continued. Concentrations of long-range transported pollutants (HCHs, HCB, DDTs, PCBs, PBDEs, and trace metals) in the Tatra Mountain fish were mostly associated with fish age, body weight and length, type of fish tissue, and lake altitude. Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in fish muscle were dominated by PCBs 138, 153, 180, and p,p’-DDE. Conversely, PBDEs concentrations ranged at substantially lower levels compared to other POPs. Altitude correlated significantly with concentrations of a-HCH, HCB, p,p’-DDT, p,p’-DDE, and with PCBs 28 and 52. The highest contents of trace metals were found in kidney and liver samples, with higher concentrations in Vel’ké Hincovo pleso than in Morskie Oko. The overall highest trace metal concentration levels were found for Fe, Cu, and Zn. In comparison with other European mountain lakes, the Tatra Mountain lakes are among the more contaminated.

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Abbreviations

HCB:

hexachlorobenzene

HCHs:

hexachlorocyclohexanes

p,p’-DDE:

dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylen

p,p’-DDT:

dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane

OCs:

organochlorines

PBDEs:

polybrominated difenylethers

PCBs:

poly-chlorobiphenyls

POPs:

persistent organic pollutants

TMs:

trace metals and metalloids

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Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by two consecutive projects: EMERGE (EVK1-CT-1999-00032) and EUROLIMPACS (GOCE-CT-2003-505540). We also thank the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic and The Czech Sciences Foundation GACR for the grant 14-09231S, which enabled the final processing of results. We also sincerely thank Peter Bitušík, Martin Blažo, Martin Černý, Barend L. van Drooge, Václav Fomín, Radek Šanda, Ingrid Vives, and Jasna Vukić for their assistance in field work, and Marie Hynštová for creating the GIS map.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Environmental Studies, Charles University in Prague, Benátská 2, CZ-12801, Prague, Czech Republic

    Kateřina Dočkalová, Jana Holubcová, David Hardekopf, Zuzana Hořická, Jolana Tátosová & Evžen Stuchlík

  2. Limnological Observatory of the Pyrenees (LOOP), Centre for Advanced Studies of Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Spain

    Montse Bacardit & Lluís Camarero

  3. CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vollès, Barcelona, Spain

    Mireia Bartrons

  4. Department of Environmental Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDÆA-CSIC) in Barcelona, Spain

    Eva Gallego & Joan O. Grimalt

  5. Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Oslo, Norway

    Bjørn Olav Rosseland

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  1. Kateřina Dočkalová
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  2. Jana Holubcová
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Correspondence to Kateřina Dočkalová.

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Dočkalová, K., Holubcová, J., Bacardit, M. et al. Brown and brook trout populations in the Tatra Mountain lakes (Slovakia, Poland) and contamination by long-range transported pollutants. Biologia 70, 516–529 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2015-0052

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