Taiwan’s industrial heavy metal pollution threatens terrestrial biota * M.J. Hsu a , K. Selvaraj b , G. Agoramoorthy c, * a Department of Biological Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung 804, Taiwan b Institute of Marine Geology and Chemistry, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung 804, Taiwan c Department of Pharmacy, Tajen University, Yanpu, Pingtung 907, Taiwan Received 14 June 2005; received in revised form 3 November 2005; accepted 25 November 2005 Metal effects occur at any terrestrial levels in Taiwan. Abstract The bioconcentration levels of essential (Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, and Zn) and non-essential (As, Cd, Hg, Pb, and Sn) elements have been inves- tigated in different terrestrial biota such as fungi, plant, earthworm, snail, crab, insect, amphibian, lizard, snake, and bat including the associated soil, to investigate the ecosystem health status in Kenting National Park, Taiwan. High bioconcentrations of Cd, Hg, and Sn in snail, earthworm, crab, lizard, snake, and bat indicated a contaminated terrestrial ecosystem. High concentrations of Cd, Hg, and Sn in plant species, effective bioaccumulation of Cd by earthworm, snail, crab and bat, as well as very high levels of Hg found in invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles revealed a strong influence from industrial pollution on the biotic community. This study for the first time presents data on the impact of heavy metal pollution on various terrestrial organisms in Taiwan. Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Terrestrial biota; Heavy metal pollution; Bioconcentration factors; Environment conservation; Taiwan 1. Introduction Human actions are causing the slow extermination of plant and animal species in nature through toxic pollution due to in- dustrial and technological advancement in recent decades (Ives and Cardinale, 2004). Heavy metals are both extremely toxic and ubiquitous in natural environments and they occur in soil, surface water and plants, and it is readily mobilized by human activities such as mining and dumping industrial waste in natural habitats such as forests, rivers, lakes, and ocean (Larison et al., 2000). As a result, heavy metals pose a potential threat to terrestrial biota. They are known to cause profound reproductive loss in birds (Fox et al., 1991; Eeva and Lehikoinen, 2000). Even in the remote artic wilderness where polar bears roam long distances in search for food, accumula- tion of high levels of industrial pollutants are becoming com- mon in wildlife (Willerroider, 2003). However, scientific data on the toxic levels of heavy metals found in different biota in terrestrial ecosystem are extremely limited in Southeast Asian countries that experienced economic boom and industrial outburst over the last few decades. A century ago, British naturalist Alfred Wallace was impressed with the immaculate natural beauty of the island of Taiwan (area 36,000 km 2 )(Wallace, 1880). It has grown from agricultural backwater status to global technological giant over the last few decades, often with irreversible environ- mental disasters (Agoramoorthy and Hsu, 2000; Chen et al., 2004). Little is known on the pollution of rivers, coastal sedi- ments and marine biota in Taiwan (Chen and Wu, 1995; Lin and Hsieh, 1999; Agoramoorthy and Hsu, 2000; Lee et al., 2000), and no comprehensive data are available on the heavy metal pollutions in terrestrial biota. This study for the first time presents data on the extent of toxic metal concentrations * This paper for the first time presents data on the impact of heavy metal pol- lution on different species of terrestrial biota. * Corresponding author. Tel.: þ886 75252000x3623; fax: þ886 75253623. E-mail address: agoram@mail.tajen.edu.tw (G. Agoramoorthy). 0269-7491/$ - see front matter Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2005.11.023 Environmental Pollution 143 (2006) 327e334 www.elsevier.com/locate/envpol