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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Jan 20.
Published in final edited form as: Sci Total Environ. 2011 Feb 2;409(8):1418–1429. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2010.12.034

Table 2.

Total mercury and selenium levels (ppm, wet weight) (μg/g) in fish species collected from New Jerseya. Given are arithmetic means±SE, standard deviation, coefficient of variation, and Kendall Tau correlation coefficients.

Common name Scientific name n Mercury SD CVd Hg correlation with
length		 Selenium SD CVe Se correlation with
length		 Hg–Se correlation Se:Hg
molar
ratioc
Mean±SE Tau (p) Mean±SE Tau (p) Tau (p)
Shortfin Mako Isurus oxyrinchus 51 1.83±0.17 1.21 66 0.29 (0.003) 0.26±0.014 0.10 39 −0.08 (NS) 0.16 (0.1) 0.36
Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Thunnus thynnus 23 0.52±0.03 0.16 31 0.05 (NS) 0.43±0.038 0.18 43 0.05 (NS) −0.30 (0.02) 2.07
Striped Bass Morone saxatilis 178 0.39±0.020 0.27 68 0.37 (<0.0001) 0.30±0.010 0.13 45 0.13 (0.008) 0.09 (0.07) 1.91
Bluefish Pomatomus saltatrix 206 0.35±0.02 0.30 86 0.49 (<0.0001) 0.37±0.009 0.13 35 0.04 (NS) 0.10 (0.003) 2.65
Tautog Tautoga onitis 47 0.20±0.02 0.10 52 0.16 (NS) 0.19±0.013 0.09 46 0.14 (NS) 0.07 (NS) 2.46
Yellowfin Tuna Thunnus albacares 45b 0.20±0.03 0.17 85 0.33 (0.1) 0.47±0.027 0.18 38 −0.50 (0.01) −0.16 (0.1) 6.11
Windowpane Flounder Scophthalmus aquosus 48 0.18±0.02 0.10 57 0.60 (<0.0001) 0.36±0.019 0.13 37 −0.26 (0.01) −0.20 (0.03) 4.98
Dolphin (Mahi-mahi) Coryphaena hippurus 27 0.17±0.04 0.20 115 0.50 (0.0003) 0.37±0.024 0.12 33 0.10 (NS) 0.20 (NS) 5.52
Southern Kingfish Menticirrhus americanus 23 0.17±0.02 0.08 47 0.58 (0.0002) 0.22±0.021 0.10 46 −0.24 (NS) −0.03 (NS) 3.21
Black Seabass Centropristis striata 19 0.16±0.02 0.07 45 0.17 (NS) 0.20±0.018 0.08 39 −0.2 (NS) −0.20 (NS) 3.13
Weakfish (Squeteague) Cynoscion regalis 60 0.15±0.01 0.11 71 0.11 (NS) 0.23±0.015 0.12 51 0.09 (NS) 0.29 (0.001) 3.77
Cunner Tautogolabrus adspersus 7 0.15±0.03 0.08 54 0.31 (NS) 0.22±0.028 0.07 33 −0.4 (NS) 0.20 (NS) 3.71
Northern Kingfish Menticirrhus saxatilis 72 0.15±0.02 0.18 117 0.47 (<0.0001) 0.28±0.013 0.11 39 −0.10 (NS) −0.06 (NS) 4.73
Summer Flounder (Fluke) Paralichthys dentatus 260 0.14±0.01 0.08 58 0.11 (0.008) 0.35±0.008 0.13 37 0.03 (NS) 0.09 (0.04) 6.38
Atlantic Croaker Micropogonias undulatus 63 0.12±0.01 0.07 61 0.57 (<0.0001) 0.48±0.023 0.18 38 0.10 (NS) 0.08 (NS) 10.5
Scup (Porgy) Stenotomus chrysops 27 0.09±0.02 0.08 86 0.05 (NS) 0.26±0.022 0.11 45 −0.19 (NS) 0.47 (0.0005) 7.15
Winter Flounder Pseudopleuronectes americanus 58 0.06±0 0.03 53 0.04 (NS) 0.25±0.014 0.11 43 −0.11 (NS) 0.02 (NS) 10.9
Ling Molva molva 39 0.04±0.01 0.04 101 0.49 (<0.0001) 0.18±0.015 0.09 51 0.07 (NS) 0.30 (0.01) 12.6
Atlantic Menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus 5 0.01±0.01 0.01 112 0.03 (NS) 0.24±0.03 0.07 29 0.10 (NS) 0.40 (NS) 61.0
a

The following species with low sample sizes had the following mercury and selenium values (ppm wet weight, means are given where n>1): Albacore (Thunnus alalunga) n=1, Hg=0.50, Se=0.53; Thresher (Alopias vulpinus) n=1 Hg=0.41, Se=0.26; Wahoo (Acanthocybium solandri) n=2 Hg=0.34, Se=0.58; Atlantic Spanish Mackerel (Scomberomorus maculatus) n=1 Hg=0.14, Se=0.39; Ocean Triggerfish (Canthidermis sufflamen) n=2 Hg=0.09, Se=0.14; Atlantic Bonito (Sarda sarda) n=3 Hg=0.05, Se=0.36.

b

Length was available for only 14 Yellowfin Tuna.

c

The Se/Hg molar ratios are calculated on unrounded mean Hg and Se values.

d

Average coefficient of variation across species for mercury (SD 100/mean) is 69.1.

e

Average coefficient of variation across species for selenium is 38.3 consistent with homeostatic regulation.

NOTE: The Se/Hg molar ratios are negatively correlated with mean mercury concentration=−0.75 (<0.0001) and not significantly correlated with Se concentration=0.06 (0.7). Kendall Tau correlation coefficients.