Conventional munition dumped into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea close to the German coastline is corroding. A major concern is that biota, including fish, are negatively affected by toxic explosives leaking into marine environments. With the present study, we investigated fish living in close proximity to munition dumping sites for contamination and for signs of health impairments. The flat fish species common dab (Limanda limanda) was used as a model, since it lives in the vicinity of dumping sites and exhibits minor migratory activity. Various health indicators (body condition factors, externally visible fish diseases, parasites or liver anomalies) were investigated.
Dumped munitions contain various harmful substances which can affect marine biota like fish. One of them is mercury (Hg), included in the common explosive primer. Another is 4-aminodinitrotoluene (4-ADNT), an explosive-metabolite. 251 individual dab (Limanda limanda L.) caught at the dump site Kolberger Heide a and nearby reference sites in 2017 and 2018 were analysed. The table contain individual data on Hg, 4-aminodinitrotoluene, age, length, weight, sex and condition factor.
Conventional munition dumped into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea close to the German coastline is corroding. A major concern is that biota, including fish, take up toxic explosives leaking into marine environments. With the present study, we investigated bile fluids of fish living in close proximity to munition dumping sites for the explosives 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), its metabolites 2-amino-4,6-dinitrolouene and 4-amino-2,6-dinitrolouene as well as octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX) using HPLC-MS/MS (high performance liquid chromatography with mass selective detection) as device. The flat fish species common dab (Limanda limanda) was used as a model, since it lives in the vicinity of dumping sites and exhibits minor migratory activity.
The dataset is a spreadsheet of munition piles, their properties (e.g., number of objects, variability, burial state), and the parameters characterizing their environmental (e.g., munition compound concentrations and current velocity) and maritime (e.g., distance to various maritime uses and traffic density) surroundings in the German Baltic Sea. Data were collected over numerous cruises from 2017 to 2024. All munition piles in the dataset are located at Kolberger Heide (close to Kiel Fjord) or in the Lübeck Bay. The purpose of data acquisition was to understand the distribution and properties of dumped munitions in German waters as well as the hazards and risks they pose to maritime uses. Munition piles were annotated in multibeam echosounder data, assessed in detail in photomosaics, and analyzed using an array of geospatial analysis methods.
Dumped munition in the German North Sea and Baltic Sea pose environmental risks as corrosion of the munition shells results in the leakage of the explosive 2,4,6-trinitroluene (TNT) into the marine environment. Uptake of TNT by marine biota and the associated negative effects on organisms are of major concern. This dataset reports behavioral responses of three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) to environmentally relevant concentrations of TNT. Experimental sticklebacks were laboratory-bred and held in groups of 30 individuals in 60 L tanks in the fish facilities at the Thünen Institute of Fisheries Ecology in Bremerhaven. Parental sticklebacks originated from the Weser estuary (Luneplate, Bremerhaven, Germany, 53°28'36.9" N; 8°31'08.9" E) and were collected in April 2023. A total of 60 sticklebacks were tested in a controlled laboratory setup at the fish facilities at the Thünen Institute in Bremerhaven, containing two hideout zones formed by artificial plants. Each hideout was connected to an infusion system delivering either a TNT solution (100 µg/L) or control water into the zone currently occupied by the fish. Experimental trials were video-recorded to enable post hoc behavioral analysis. Behavioral metrics included the total time spent in the exposed hideout zone (s), latency to first leave the exposed hideout zone (s), and the number of crossings between hideout zones.
Cruise AL567 (R/V Alkor) sampled the water column in German territorial waters of the southwest Baltic Sea during 18-30 October 2021. This dataset contains concentrations of dissolved munition compounds from 88 Niskin bottle rosette casts between sea surface and seafloor. Samples were collected at the sea surface (1-2 m depth), approximately 2 m above the seafloor, and immediately below the pycnocline. Dissolved explosives in the samples were measured following Gledhill et al. (2019). Briefly, discrete samples (1 L) were preconcentrated onboard using solid-phase extraction. Target compounds were eluted with acetonitrile, further concentrated by evaporation, and measured by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography and high resolution heated electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.
The German waters contain around 1.6 millions of tons of munition, mostly dumped after the world wars. Within Lübeck Bay (Baltic Sea) the majority of the munition is concentrated in the officially designated dumpsites (Munition Cadaster "AmuCad", EGEOS GmbH, www.amucad.org ). However, many individual items or piles are found outside of these areas. Most of the munition contain conventional explosives, primarily 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), which is toxic and is known to cause cancer in various organisms in water solutions with concentration > 1 mg/l (Lotufo et l., 2017; Beck et al., 2018). The structure and composition of epifauna was investigated on the dumped munition in the previously unknown site using a remotely operated vehicle (BlueRobotics, model BlueROV2) during cruise AL622 with RV 'Alkor' on 19. October 2024. Nine individual munition objects and the surrounding sediment were observed in the central-northern Lübeck Bay at depth of 19-21 m at the area of ~500 m². Two videos have been made: the one of all objects filmed with the in-built camera; the second of six objects filmed with the additional GoPro3 camera, mounted on the ROV. Objects were identified as warheads from the Fieseler Fi 103 (known as V1) packed for transporting in additional metal carcass. The warheads are on a different stage of degradation. Their metal parts are covered with dense epifauna communities and bare explosives is mostly free from fouling.
Cruise POS530 (R/V Poseidon) sampled the water column throughout German territorial waters of the southwest Baltic Sea during 01-21 October 2018. The current dataset contains concentrations of dissolved munition compounds from Niskin bottle rosette casts between sea surface and seafloor. Vertical sampling resolution varied among stations, with a maximum of 9 sampling depths. Dissolved explosives in the samples were measured following Gledhill et al. (2019). Briefly, discrete samples (1 L) were preconcentrated onboard using solid-phase extraction. Target compounds were eluted with acetonitrile, further concentrated by evaporation, and measured by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography and high resolution heated electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.
This dataset consists of munition compound data from the analysis of water samples collected along a cruise track that went through German and Danish waters of the western Baltic Sea in October 2023 during ALKOR cruise AL603. The cruise track started and ended in the Bay of Kiel, via the Little Belt, Bay of Aarhus, Great Belt and Bay of Mecklenburg. Water column samples were collected from 99 stations. Surface and deep-water samples were collected using a rosette of Niskin bottles. A CTD sensor package was also mounted on the the Niskin rosette frame. Samples (1L) were extracted onboard onto solid phase extraction (SPE) columns. Munition compounds were eluted from the SPE columns using acetonitrile, concentrated and reconstituted in 50% methanol/water. The samples were analyzed by ultra high-performance liquid chromatography and high-resolution, atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry.
Water column samples were collected from 62 sampling stations along a transect stretching from Flensburg Fjord to the Bay of Mecklenburg in October 2022 during ALKOR cruise AL583. Here, we present metadata and munition compound data for the samples. Surface, mid-depth and deep-water samples were collected using a rosette of Niskin bottles. A CTD sensor package was also mounted on the Niskin rosette frame. Samples (1L) were extracted onboard onto solid phase extraction (SPE) columns. Munition compounds were eluted from the SPE columns using acetonitrile, concentrated and reconstituted in 50% methanol/water. The samples were analyzed by ultra high-performance liquid chromatography and high-resolution, atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry.
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