Use of Feathers from Birds that Collided with Vehicles to Monitor Heavy Metal Contamination in Western Khorasan Razavi, Iran.

In the present study, lead, zinc and copper concentrations in the feathers of Common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), Eurasian magpie (Pica pica), Common buzzard (Buteo buteo), Crested lark (Galerida cristata), Eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops), Little owl (Athene noctua), Long-eared owl (Asio otus), Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo) and Long-legged buzzard (Buteo rufinus) from Sabzevar and Neghab, Khorasan Razavi of Iran were measured. Almost all of the specimens were obtained from birds that had collided with vehicles or were unable to fly. There were no significant differences in metal concentrations between adult and juvenile, diurnal and nocturnal raptors and species with different diets. Elemental concentrations were lower than toxicity threshold values, so exposure to these elements does not appear to pose a health risk to the studied species. It should be noted that this study was the first study of metals in Galerida cristata, Asio otus and Buteo rufinus.

Measurement of metal concentrations in feathers of bird-vehicle collisions, Sabzevar, Iran.

The purpose of the present study is to compare the concentrations of lead, copper, and zinc in feathers of birds struck in collisions with vehicles. Two main assumptions were investigated: that there is a significant difference between species with different diets and that large and old species have higher concentrations of lead than small and young species because of their longer life span and longer exposure time to pollutants. Mean concentrations were obtained for lead 0.122, 0.006, 0.007, 0.010, and 0.014, for copper 0.718, 0.783, 0.530, 0.853, and 0.793, and for zinc 0.891, 0.940, 0.787, 0.932, and 1.003 in house sparrow (Passer domesticus), tree sparrow (Passer montanus), European roller (Coracias garrulus), Little bittern (Ixobrychus minutus), and Levant sparrowhawk (Accipiter brevipes), respectively. The results showed that there were no significant differences in the concentrations of the studied elements between species with different diets and as well as between large and small size or juveniles and adults; thus, the two hypotheses were rejected. The concentrations of the studied elements were lower than the "negative effects" threshold values suggested by previous studies; thus, they are not likely to pose a serious threat to the selected species. However, it is important to include not only other non-essential elements in future studies but also larger sample sizes. It is also noteworthy that this is the first study to determine the concentration of metals in two of the species, Coracias garrulous and Accipiter brevipes.