Do pollutants in aquatic environments affect fish behavior?

Pollutants in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems remain a concern for scientists and the public. This is particularly true in the case of chemicals that persist in the environment with potential for lasting effects on the populations that live there and on humans that rely on that ecosystem.

A recent study led by Professor Andrew Whitehead and Postdoctoral Scholar Dr. Nicole McNabb-Kelada, and conducted by EEWL REU student Lars Anderson showed that Atlantic killifish exposed to PCBs—pollutants common to coastal killifish habitats—swam shorter distances and at slower speeds than unexposed fish, which could carry consequences for escaping predators or catching the next meal. The findings add to growing evidence that some of the most persistent pollutants on Earth not only accumulate in animals’ tissue, but change how those animals behave. The findings also raise a bigger question: how some killifish populations have managed to survive for generations in estuaries full of PCBs.

Killifish... offer broader insight into how species rapidly evolve tolerance to human-made pollutants.

Anderson summarized the research in this area in a short briefing statement. The statement, written as part of the EEWL REU workshop in science communication, focuses on increasing public understanding of implications of the killifish research for both natural and human populations