Number of samples.

(b)

Floodgate

iro

(a The + value is 1 o counting error. When the counting error is 7100%, the concentration is reported as <2 0.

26,82 0,5

0.04 + 0.02
1,07 4 0.08

59 + 31—106 + 65
286 + 288
Franklin

(3) (D)

Nm
id

(soft parts)

Crayfish
Rip Rap Bridge
0.8 km S. Chautauqua

%
Wt
D
Wet Wt

23.0—-24.5]

<0.37

0.35 + 0.20~0,44 + 0,20)
0.12 +06.12

0.53 + 0.28

0.04 40.04
0.14+ 0.03

2368,

25.5 + 1.5-37.2 41.7]
35,241.5

70.2

3.5+41.0

385/239: 2400
9

(a

wa

522

Rip Rap Bridge

Table 3 presents data for miscellaneous aquatic organisms. Again, 239, 240py
concentrations are fairly simllar upstream and downstream from Mound
Laboratory. The clam shells have not been analyzed, but the soft parts have
very iow levels of plutonium, The 239,240py concentrations in crayfish
reported here are similar to published results for crayfish from Lake Michigan
(Yaguchi et al., 1973). The concentration of
Pu in a whole frog collected
at Floodgate, downstream from Mound Laboratory, is in the range of values
found in carp bodies collected downstream. As expected, crayfish show a

iGlams

possibility would explain the relatively low 238p.y activities of their gastrointestinal tract and contents,

Sample

Fowler, 1974). The 238py concentrations in gastrointestinal tracts for carp
collected at the Power Plant site are much lower than those from other
downstream sites. These fish were captured in deep water with a boomshocker and were much larger than those collected by other methods at
different sampling sites. Because the Power Plant site is less than 2 km
below Mound Laboratory, it is possible that either these fish moved into
the area from upstream shortly before capture, or the difference in size and
feeding habits caused less sediment to be present in their gut. Either

Pu activities (Ci/g dry wt)

fers across intestinal walls into body tissues; mest of it is eliminated in
the feces (Emery et al., 1974), This lack of transfer across the gut wall is
confirmed in other plutonium distribution studies (Bowen, 1974; Adams and

239,240

porportion of high activity sediment in the gut at capture, It 1s apparent
from the data in Table 2 that little of the plutonium taken into the gut trans-

Pu and

material, Since algal and sediment activities (Wayman etal., 1974;
Volchok, 1975} are much higher below Mound Laboratory, the variability in
8pu concentrations generally indicate the volume of material and relative

238

Carp with gastrointestinal tracts removed show only a slight increase in
238py downstream from Mound while activities in gut tissue and contents
are more variable and much higher (Table 2). Analysis of stomach contents
of carp from the Great Miami River indicate plant and algal detritus along
with varying amounts of sediment comprise the major proportion of gut

Table 3,

studies by other workers show food and habitat effects on plutonium concentrations in fish (Waller et al., 1973; Noshkin, 1972; Emery et al,, 1974).

in miscellaneous aquatic organisms.

The Power Plant station is downstream of Mound Laboratory

within 0.5 km of our Chautauqua sampling site. The concentrations of
239,240py in different species from all sites are quite similar and fall
within the range of values reported from other studies of freshwater and
marine fish (Waller et al., 1973; Bowen, 1974; Livingston and Bowen, 1975;
Noshkin, 1972; Miettinen, 1976). The elevated concentrations of 238py
below Mound also show little variance between different species. Since
shad are typically filter feeders, carp and goldfish bottom feeders, and
minnows selective feeders (Lagler, 1952), feeding preferences appear to
have little effect on plutonium concentrations. However, this apparent
consistancy may be a function of the small sample size, as more detailed

239,240,

shows slightly elevated levels of 238py, possibly due to contamination

during analysis.

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