Project description
Effects of mercury on the Arctic’s little auk bird
Levels of the metal mercury (Hg) have tripled in the upper ocean since the start of the Industrial Revolution. Mercury in rivers, lakes and oceans presents the biggest risk. Converted into a toxic form called methylmercury, it is absorbed by animals and moves up the food chain until it reaches humans. Selenium (Se) has a protective effect against Hg toxicity. The EU-funded DeToxSea project will assess the Se/Hg interaction. It will focus on the little auk, a breeding bird in the Arctic. The project will investigate if Se/Hg concentrations affect the reproductive output of little auks. The findings will shed light on the demographic effects of Se/Hg toxic contamination in Arctic wildlife.
Objective
Mercury (Hg) concentrations in the oceans have tripled in the last centuries, even in remote areas such as the Arctic. Hg is bioaccumulated in food webs and can produce toxic effects affecting breeding and survival probabilities in wildlife. Selenium (Se) has been proved to have a protective effect against Hg toxicity, but no long-term studies have been carried out to evaluate reproductive output and population dynamics in relation to Se or the interaction Se-Hg. Using as a population model the most abundant breeding bird in the Arctic, the little auk (Alle alle), I aim to 1) evaluate the temporal trends of Se/Hg and on which intrinsic/extrinsic factors they depend on; 2) investigate if Se/Hg concentrations affect the reproductive output of little auks (i.e. at the individual level); and 3) evaluate the effects of Se/Hg at the population levels in the context of climate change (i.e. considering environmental conditions). To do so, I will use data of 15 years of monitoring on little auks from west Greenland (Kape Høegh). I will analyse pollutants on blood samples at the host laboratory, and I will perform different statistical approaches to investigate our objectives. In particular, we will look for functional relationships to evaluate pollutants temporal/environmental trends and their toxic effects on the reproductive output of little auks; and demographic models (multistate mark-recapture models and matrix population models) to evaluate the projected population growth rate and its sensitivity to Hg/Se and environmental conditions. This research program will gather knowledge from a large interdisciplinary team, with expertise in ecotoxicology and demography. We anticipate major public interest for the results of DeToxSea: the unique long-term study about demographic effects of Se/Hg toxic contamination in Arctic wildlife, that will give light to one of the Challenges of Horizon 2020 about Climate Action, Environment, Resource Efficiency and Raw Materials.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
17031 La Rochelle
France
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.