Dioxins, furans and AHH-active PCB congeners in eggs of two gull species from the Western Mediterranean

Polychlorinated biphenyls, dibenzodioxins and dibenzofurans were analysed in eggs of a protected gull species, the Audouinʹs Gull (Larus audouinii) and compared to those of the Yellow-legged Gull (Larus cachinnans), both breeding in the Western Mediterranean (Ebro Delta and Medes Islands, respectively). Differences in concentrations as well as in congener profiles reflected differences in both habitat and diet of the two species. Levels of AHH-active PCB congeners were lower in Yellow-legged Gull (0.4–1.6.μg/g d.w) than in Audouinʹs Gull eggs (1.2–33.9 μg/g d.w.). These concentrations, expressed in international toxic equivalence factors (i-TEQ/g d.w.), were on average 24 times higher in the Audouinʹs gull. I-TEQ levels due to dioxins were also higher in this species by a factor of ca. 7. I-TEQ levels related to PCBs resulted 90–230 times higher than those of dioxins and furans. Thus, AHH-inducing PCBs might represent even higher toxicological hazards than dioxins and furans to some populations of seabirds. The necessity of assessing the impact of these compounds in rare and protected species is pointed out.