LEAD-POISONING OF SPECTACLED EIDERS (SOMATERIA-FISCHERI) AND OF A COMMON EIDER (SOMATERIA-MOLLISSIMA) IN ALASKA

Lead poisoning was diagnosed in four spectacled elders (Somateria fischeri) and one common elder (Somateria mollissima) found dead or moribund at the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska (USA) in 1992, 1993, and 1994. Ingested lead shot was found in the lower esophagus of one spectacled elder and in the gizzard of the common elder. Lead concentrations in the livers of the spectacled elders were 26 to 38 ppm wet weight, and 52 ppm wet weight in the liver of the common elder. A blood sample collected from one of the spectacled eiders before it was euthanized had a lead concentration of 8.5 ppm wet weight. This is the first known report of lead poisoning in the spectacled elder, recently listed as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.