Mercury concentrations in spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus from Northwest Florida

Abstract

We determined total mercury concentrations in dorsal muscle tissue of 112 spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) collected between 1993 and 1996 from Pensacola Bay and Choctawhatchee Bay, FL. We describe the relationships of length, weight, age, and sex to total mercury concentrations in this species. Fish ranged in size from 235 to 613 mm total length (TL), with a mean of 463 mm TL. The majority (84%) of the fish collected were female. The mean total mercury concentration detected in all fish combined was 0.40 ± 0.15 ppm, and in individual fish, total mercury concentrations ranged from 0.11 to 0.88 ppm. We detected no significant differences in mercury concentrations between sexes. Total mercury concentrations was positively correlated with fish TL and weight. However, no relationship was evident between total mercury concentration and age. Mercury concentrations detected in the majority of spotted seatrout examined from northwest Florida were below the State of Florida's limited-consumption advisory of 0.5 ppm.