Atypical Endpoints for Typical Problems in Endangered Species Conservation. N. L. Scholz and T. K. Collier, NOAA, NMFS, Northwest Fisheries Science Center
A basic aim of ecological risk assessment is to determine whether the release of toxic chemicals into the natural environment will have harmful effects on wildlife. The accuracy of a risk assessment depends critically on the quality and nature of the underlying toxicological data. Typical toxicological endpoints such as acute mortality are only useful for predicting a specific biological outcome - i.e., assessing whether a chemical exposure will kill an animal outright. Lethality measures are much less useful for estimating the possibility of sublethal biological effects. Because the vast majority of chemical exposures in the natural environment are sublethal, the predictive value of typical toxicological endpoints (e.g. acute mortality) is greatest for ecological conditions that are atypical (e.g. an accidental chemical spill). To address this disconnect, we are investigating the sublethal effects of current use pesticides on the environmental health of Pacific salmon with an emphasis on threatened and endangered species. We are using an integrative approach that incorporates atypical endpoints at the biochemical, physiological, and behavioral scales of biological complexity. The goal of this research is to generate sublethal toxicological data that can be used to more accurately assess the risks that pesticides pose for salmonids.
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