Model description of trophodynamic behavior of methylmercury in a marine aquatic system

A marine food web in Bohai Bay, China, was selected to study methylmercury (MeHg) bioaccumulation, and an aquivalence-based mass balance model was established to explore the possibility of predicting the MeHg concentrations and quantifying MeHg bioaccumulation in the food web. Results showed that both total mercury (THg) and MeHg were biomagnified in the food web. The calculated MeHg concentrations in the selected species agreed well with the measured values, which shows the model could be a useful tool in MeHg concentration prediction in food web. Model outputs also showed that metabolism and growth dilution could be the dominant mechanisms for the reduction of MeHg levels in aquatic organisms. With the increase of trophic level, the contribution of food as a MeHg source for organism is increasing, and MeHg from prey was the dominant source.

► We model the bioaccumulation of methylmercury in a marine aquatic food web.
► Aquivalence-based mass balance model could quantify MeHg trophic transfer.
► Metabolism and growth dilution are dominant mechanisms of MeHg reduction in organisms.
► With increase of trophic levels, contribution of food as MeHg source is increasing.