Abstract
Mercury (Hg) methylation could occur in freshwater ecosystems with low or high salinity. However, few studies are available about the effects of salinity change on mercury(Hg) release and methylation. In-situ experiments using Suaeda heteroptera wetland soil column from the Liaohe estuary were performed to decipher how total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) contents change under fluctuant salinity and wet and dry soil conditions. Salinity gradients were set to 0.50% (S1), 1.00% (S2), 1.50% (S3) and 1.80% (S4), and pure deionized water was used as a blank control (CK). Wet and dry soil conditions were set to full inundation condition (WD1) and naturally dried treatment (WD2). Results indicated that the highest THg and MeHg contents were found in surface and bottom soil when water salinity treatment was CK under WD1. THg and MeHg decreased with salinity under WD1. THg contents in overlying water varied from 0.854 to 1.243 µg L−1 under WD1 treatments and increased with salinity change. When under WD2 treatment, THg contents in both soil layers gradually decreased with rising salinity. Meanwhile, MeHg contents in both soil layers reached the lowest level at CK (1.666 μg kg−1and 2.520 μg kg−1) and increased gradually with the rising salinity. By comparison, THg content of the soil was much lower in WD1 than that in WD2. Under the WD1 condition, the MeHg contents and %MeHg decreased with rising salinity and showed significantly different in different salinity treatment, however, its showed an opposite trend with rising salinity under the WD2 condition.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Barkay T, Wagner-Döbler I (2005) Microbial transformations of mercury: potentials, challenges, and achievements in controlling mercury toxicity in the environment. Adv Appl Microbiol 57:1–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2164(05)57001-1
Barkay T, Gillman M, Turner RR (1997) Effects of dissolved organic carbon and salinity on bioavailability of mercury. Appl Environ Microbiol 63(11):4267. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0290(19971105)56:3%3c345:AID-BIT13%3e3.0.CO;2-F
Benoit JM (2003) Geochemical and biological controls over methylmercury production and degradation in aquatic ecosystems. ACS Symp 835:262–297. https://doi.org/10.1021/bk-2003-0835.ch019
Berman M, Bartha R (1986) Levels of chemical versus biological methylation of mercury in sediments. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 36:401–404. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01623527
Boyd ES, Yu RQ, Barkay T, Hamilton TL, Baxter BK (2017) Effect of salinity on mercury methylating benthic microbes and their activities in Great Salt Lake. Utah Sci Total Environ 581–582:495–506. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-018-2326-4
Buckman K, Taylor V, Broadley H et al (2017) Methylmercury bioaccumulation in an urban estuary: delaware River USA. Estuaries Coasts 40(13):1358–1370. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-017-0232-3
Compeau G, Bartha R (1984) Methylation and demethylation of mercury under controlled redox, pH and salinity conditions. Appl Environ Microbiol 48(6):1203–1207. https://doi.org/10.1016/0141-4607(84)90089-1
Correia RRS, Guimaräes JRD (2016) Impacts of crab bioturbation and local pollution on sulfate reduction, Hg distribution and methylation in mangrove sediments, Rio de Janeiro. Braz Mar Pollut Bull 109(1):453–460. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.05.028
Cui BS, He Q, Zhao XS (2008) Researches on the ecological thresholds of Suaeda salsa to the environmental gradients of water table depth and soil salinity. Acta Ecol Sin 28:1408–1418 (in Chinese)
Ding ZH, Wu H, Liu JL (2011) Distribution of Hg in mangrove trees and its implication for Hg enrichment in the mangrove ecosystem. Appl Geochem 26:205–212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2010.11.020
Driscoll CT, Mason RP, Chan HM (2013) Mercury as a global pollutant: sources, pathways, and effects. Environ Sci Technol 47:4967–4983. https://doi.org/10.1021/es305071v
Dutton J, Fisher NS (2011) Salinity effects on the bioavailability of aqueous metals for the estuarine killifish Fundulus heteroclitus. Environ Toxicol Chem 30:2107–2114. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.600
Eagles-Smith CA, Ackerman JT (2014) Mercury bioaccumulation in estuarine wetland fishes: evaluating habitats and risks to coastal wildlife. Environ Pollut 193:147–155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2014.06.015
Gardfeldt K, Sommar J, Ferrara R (2003) Evasion of mercury from coastal and open waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Atmos Environ 37(1):73–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1352-2310(03)00238-3
Graham AM, Aiken GR, Gilmour CC (2012) Dissolved organic matter enhances microbial mercury methylation under sulfidic conditions. Environ Sci Technol 46(5):2715–2723. https://doi.org/10.1021/es203658f
Guo HJ (2019) Distribution characteristics and bioavailability of mercury based on diffusive gradients in thin films technique in water of Nansi Lake. University of Jinan, Jinan (in Chinese)
Hollweg TA, Gilmour CC, MasonR P (2009) Methylmercury production in sediments of Chesapeake Bay and the mid-Atlantic continental margin. Marire Chem 114(3):86–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marchem.2009.04.004
Hsu-Kim H, Kucharzyk KH, Zhang T (2013) Mechanisms regulating mercury bioavailability for methylating microorganisms in the aquatic environment: a critical review. Environ Sci Technol 47:2441–2456. https://doi.org/10.1021/es304370g
Kim CS, Rytuba JJ, Brown JGE (2004) EXAFS study of mercury(II) sorption to Fe- and Al-(hydr)oxides: II. Effects of chloride and sulfate. J Colloid Interface Sci 270(1):9–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2003.07.029
Kongchum M, Devai I, Delaune RD (2006) Jugsujinda total mercury and methylmercury in freshwater and salt marsh soils of the Mississippi river deltaic plain. Chemosphere 63:1300–1303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2005.09.024
Li H, Zheng DM, Ma HC (2018) Simulation of total mercury content variability in wetland sediments in the Liaohe Estuary. J Agro-Environ Sci 37(4):774–779 (in Chinese)
Li H, Zheng DM, Yang JS (2019) Salinity and redox conditions affect the methyl mercury formation in sediment of Suaeda heteroptera wetlands of Liaoning province, Northeast China. Mar Pollut Bull 142:537–543. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.03.066
Liang P, Zhang C, Yang YK (2014) A simulation study of mercury release fluxes from soils in wet-dry rotation environment. J Environ Sci 26:1445–1452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jes.2014.05.010
Liu RH, Liu SX, Wang J (2017) Change of mercury and methylmercury in Yellow River Delta wetlands from autumn to summer. Acta Sci Circum 37(1):272–279 (in Chinese)
Martin-Doimeadios R, Tessier E, Amouroux D (2004) Mercury methylation/demethylation and volatilization pathways in estuarine sediment slurries using species-specific enriched stable isotopes. Mar Chem 90(1–4):107–123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marchem.2004.02.022
Merritt KA, Amirbahman A (2009) Mercury methylation dynamics in estuarine and coastal marine environments—a critical review. Earth Sci Rev 96:54–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2009.06.002
Moore C, Carpi A (2005) Mechanisms of the emission of mercury from soil: role of UV radiation. J Geophys Res 110(D24):1–9. https://doi.org/10.1029/2004JD005567
Oliveira DCD, Correia RR, Marinho CC (2015) Mercury methylation in sediments of a Brazilian mangrove under different vegetation covers and salinities. Chemosphere 127(127):214–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2015.02.009
Raposo JC, Ozamiz G, Etxebarria N (2008) Mercury biomethylation assessment in the estuary of Bilbao (North of Spain). Environ Pollut 156(2):482–488. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2008.01.017
Rasmussen PE, Mierle G, Nriagu JO (1991) The analysis of vegetation for total mercury. Water Air Soil Pollut 56(1):379–390. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00342285
Ridley W, Dizikes L, Wood J (1977) Biomethylation of toxic elements in the environment. Science 197(4301):329–332. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.877556
Sun RG, Wang D, Zhang Y (2013) Photo-degradation of monomethylmercury in the presence of chloride ion. Chemosphere 91(11):1471–1476. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.12.013
Tao W (2016) Study on growth ecological stoichiometry relation of Suaeda heteropterain Liaohe River Estuary wetland. Dalian Ocean University, Dalian (in Chinese)
Wang Y, Liu RH, Gao HW (2010) Degeneration mechanism research of Suaeda heteroptera wetland of the Shuangtaizi Estuary National Nature Reserve in China. Procedia Environ Sci 2:1157–1162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2010.10.124
Wang XY, He CF, Sun RG (2015) Releases and methylation of soil mercury in water-level fluctuating zone of the three gorges reservoir region. Environ Chem 34(1):172–177 (in Chinese)
Whalin L, Kim E, Mason R (2007) Factors influencing the oxidation, reduction, methylation and demethylation of mercury species in coastal waters. Mar Chem 107:278–294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marchem.2007.04.002
Xiang YP, Du HX, Shen H (2014) Dynamics of total culturable bacteria and its relationship with methylmercury in the soils of the water level fluctuation zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir. Sci Bull 59(24):2966–2972. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-014-0324-4
Xiao Y, Yang JS (2015) Soil organic carbon mineralization and its relation with salinity in coastal wetland of Liao-he estuary. Chin J Ecol 34(10):2792–2798 (in Chinese)
Yan HY, Feng XB (2011) Research development on water/air exchange flux of mercury. Environ Chem 30(1):92–96 (in Chinese)
Yin Y, Allen HE, Huang CP (1997) Kinetics of mercury(II) adsorption and desorption on soil. Environ Sci Technol 31(2):496–503. https://doi.org/10.1021/es9603214
Zhang ZS, Sun XJ, Wang QC (2010) Recovery from mercury contamination in the second Songhua River. China Water Air Soil Pollut 211(1–4):219–229. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-009-0294-3
Zhang C, Song L, Wang DY (2013) Mercury speciation transformation in soil of the water-level-fluctuating zone in the Three Gorges Area under alternative dry-wet condition. Chin J Appl Ecol 24(12):3531–3536 (in Chinese)
Zheng DM, Yang JS, Li H (2017a) Mercury and methylmercury concentrations and their influencing factors in soils of different types of wetlands of Liaohe Estuary. Chin J Ecol 36(4):1067–1071 (in Chinese)
Zheng SA, Han YL, Li XH et al (2017b) A simulation study on the effect of salinity on the fractions distribution of exogenous mercury in the wastewaterirrigated area of Tianjin City. China Environ Sci 37(5):1858–1865 (in Chinese)
Acknowledgements
We acknowledge Zheng Dongmei, Professor of the University of Shenyang, China, for her help in interpreting the significance of the results of this study.
Funding
Under the auspices of National Natural Science Foundation of China (41571085), Liaoning Province Key R & D Plan Guidance Project (2019JH8/10200024) and The Program for Innovative Talents of Liaoning Higher Education Institution (LR2016078).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Li, H., Zheng, D., Zhang, X. et al. Total and Methylmercury of Suaeda heteroptera Wetland Soil Response to a Salinity Gradient Under Wetting and Drying Conditions. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 104, 778–785 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-020-02874-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-020-02874-1