Mercury concentrations in Baja California Sur fish: Dietary exposure assessment

Total mercury concentrations ([THg]) in muscle were determined in commercial finfish and elasmo-branchs from Baja California Sur (BCS), Mexico to evaluate dietary Hg exposure for BCS communities, including the relationship of trophic ecology, length and mass with [THg] that might drive future consumption advice (e.g., recommend limited consumption of large fish for some species). The [THg] ranged from 0.06 to 528.02 mu g kg(-1) ww in finfish and 17.68-848.26 mu g kg(-1) ww in elasmobranchs. Relative to the consumption threshold set for predatory fish in Mexico, all species had a concentration below 1000 mu g kg(-1) ww. As expected,16 (4.02%) and 75 (18.84%) individual fish were above advisory thresholds of 500 and 200 mu g kg(-1) ww, respectively. The hazard quotients (HQs) in most species were significantly <1.0, only banded guitarfish showed a significant median HQ > 1.0. Thus, the relative level of risk of high Hg exposure is low for most species. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A study was conducted to determine total mercury concentrations ([THg]) in commercial finfish and elasmobranchs from Baja California Sur (BCS), Mexico, with results showing that the relative risk of high mercury exposure is low for most species, although a few individuals had mercury concentrations exceeding recommended thresholds.