CHARACTERIZATION OF ACETYLCHOLINESTERASE LEVELS IN Falco femoralis AND Caracara plancus IN ENVIRONMENTS WITH DIFFERENT INSECTICIDE EXPOSURE

LIÉBANA MARIA SOLEDAD; JUAN M. GRANDE; HUGO DANIEL GIMENEZ; MARCELO FORT ; MIGUEL A. SANTILLÁN; JULIETA MALLET

Puerto Iguazú

Congreso; Ornithological Congress of the Americas; 2017

SOCIEDADE BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA / AVES ARGENTINAS / ASSOCIATION OF FIELD ORNITHOLOGISTS

Organophosphate and carbamate insecticides are commonly used agrochemicals highly toxic to birds. These act by inhibition of acetylcholinesterase enzyme in central and peripheral nervous system. Two raptors especially susceptible to contamination by these insecticides are the aplomado falcon (Falco femoralis) and the Southern caracara (Caracara plancus). The aim of this work is to determine the level of cholinesterase activity in these species and to compare it between environments with greater and lesser potential exposure. For this, individuals were captured in agricultural and forest areas of Caldén in La Pampa province. Blood samples collection allowed to determine acetylcholinesterase plasmatic activity by colorimetric techniques. Through GLM was analyzed if nestlings of both species showed different levels of enzymatic activity when compared between environments. Sex or weight were also included as explanatory variables. Mean levels of activity were 931 and 857.6 for males (n = 5) and females (n = 19) adult Aplomado falcon respectively, while they were 963.5 and 1044.2 U / l for pigeons (n = 34 and 38 respectively). Discriminating by environment the activity was lower in agricultural areas (p = 0.016) and had no influence of sex. The mean for Southern caracara nestlings was 787.3 U / l (n = 30) and did not show zone effect or weight (p>0.05). Even though none of the analyzed individuals showed signs of deterioration, it is possible that exposure to sublethal doses in agroecosystems may have effects on the physiology and behavior altering the normal performance of individuals and their population dynamics, these factors should be more deeply analyzed