Sea Turtle Tissue Contaminant Measurements from Korean Coastal Waters

Measurements of chlorinated, brominated, and fluorinated persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in organs and tissues of loggerhead and green sea turtles. The data includes legacy and emerging contaminants, such as F-53B, and compares concentrations between species and tissue types. This dataset, authored by Aiswarya Radhakrishnan and last updated in April 2026, is the first report estimating the body burden of POPs in sea turtles.

Use Cases

• Compare contaminant accumulation between loggerhead and green sea turtle species based on trophic level differences mentioned in the description.
• Analyze tissue-specific partitioning of chlorinated/brominated contaminants versus PFASs based on reported accumulation in fat, muscle, and liver.
• Investigate the presence and concentration of emerging PFASs, such as longer-chain carboxylates and F-53B, in marine wildlife.
• Estimate total body burden of persistent organic pollutants in sea turtles as described in the study.

Strengths

• Includes measurements for both legacy and emerging persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
• Compares contaminant levels between two distinct sea turtle species: loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green (Chelonia mydas).
• Analyzes multiple organs and tissues, allowing for tissue-specific accumulation studies.
• Published under a CC-BY-4.0 license, permitting open sharing and reuse.

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The dataset is small (51.4 KB), indicating limited scope.

Provenance

Source

figshare

Collection Method

Samples obtained via stranding or bycatch along the Korean coast.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-16 04:19:19; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Korean coastal waters