Lead poisoning mortality in wild passeriformes and its detection in free-range chicken eggs in Southern Minas Gerais, Brazil

• Main Authors: NRS Martins, MVR Marques, Vilela DAR, JS Resende, AG Carvalhaes, EAG Andrade, PR Barrios
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Fundação APINCO de Ciência e Tecnologia Avícolas 2010-09-01
• Series: Brazilian Journal of Poultry Science
• Subjects: Battery recycling; car; free-range chicken; lead; passerine
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1516-635X2010000300002

The mortality of passerines native of Southern Minas Gerais, Brazil, in August 2006 and the examination of sentinel free-range chicken eggs in August 2007 in an area surrounding a car battery lead smelter plant is described. The high levels of lead, as detected in the passerines (4.80-12.74 mg/kg) at the onset of mortality and at the follow-up sampling of the free-range chicken eggs (25.02-35.21 mg/kg in shells, 0.41-1.36 mg/kg in yolks and 0.40-0.75 mg/kg in the albumins), used as environmental sentinels, indicated the continuing lead pollution.