Although biomagnification of radiocesium (¹³⁷Cs) has been reported in food webs, most previous research has been limited to select trophic linkages. Few studies have included a comprehensive survey of fauna associated with aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial habitats within a single study framework. The objectives of this study were to advance our understanding of the dynamics of ¹³⁷Cs accumulation within food webs by quantifying ¹³⁷Cs activity across a wide range of biota found within a contaminated canal, as well as test the hypothesis that life-stage and body size influence ¹³⁷Cs bioaccumulation in select herpetofauna. With extensive sampling across multiple taxa collected from a contaminated canal system and associated floodplain on the Savannah River Site, we assessed ¹³⁷Cs activity and stable nitrogen isotopes for both aquatic organisms that were restricted to the contaminated effluent canal, and semi-aquatic organisms able to move freely between the contaminated canal and the adjacent uncontaminated terrestrial habitat. We found ¹³⁷Cs activity to be highly variable among species, with evidence for and against biomagnification in semi-aquatic and aquatic organisms, respectively. Furthermore, ¹³⁷Cs activity decreased with life stage and body size in bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus), despite post-metamorphic bullfrogs having a more carnivorous diet compared to tadpoles, while cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus) retained similar ¹³⁷Cs activity regardless of their age and size. Although evidence of biomagnification has been observed in some contaminated systems, results of our study suggest the extent to which ¹³⁷Cs biomagnifies within food webs is context-dependent and likely influenced by a suite of biotic and abiotic factors. Further, our data indicate sampling of a broad suite of species and environmental attributes are needed to elucidate the fate and dynamics of anthropogenic pollutants within contaminated ecosystems.

尽管在食物网中已经报道了放射性铯的生物放大作用（¹³⁷ Cs），但大多数先前的研究仅限于选择营养连接。很少有研究在一个研究框架内对与水生，半水生和陆生生境相关的动物进行全面调查。这项研究的目的是通过量化在受污染的运河中发现的各种生物群中的¹³⁷ Cs活性，来增进我们对食物网中¹³⁷ Cs积累的动态的了解，并检验生命周期和体型的假设影响¹³⁷选择的疱疹动物中的CS生物蓄积。通过从受污染的运河系统和萨凡纳河站点的相关洪泛区收集的多个分类单元的大量采样，我们评估了仅限于受污染的污水渠的水生生物和能够进行污染的半水生生物的¹³⁷ Cs活性和稳定的氮同位素。在受污染的运河和邻近的未受污染的陆地栖息地之间自由移动。我们发现¹³⁷ Cs活性在物种之间变化很大，分别有证据表明半水生生物和水生生物具有和不具有生物放大作用。此外，牛蛙（Lithobates catesbeianus）的¹³⁷ Cs活性随着生命周期和体重的增加而降低。），尽管变态后的牛蛙的饮食比car更肉食，而棉嘴（Agkistrodon piscivorus）不论年龄和大小，都保留了类似的¹³⁷ Cs活性。尽管在某些受污染的系统中已观察到生物放大作用的证据，但我们的研究结果表明，食物网中¹³⁷ Cs的生物放大作用程度取决于具体情况，并可能受到一系列生物和非生物因素的影响。此外，我们的数据表明需要对广泛的物种和环境属性进行采样，以阐明受污染生态系统内人为污染物的命运和动态。