Abstract
Paper mill effluents are discharged into Elevenmile Creek at Cantonment, Escambia County, Florida. The total population of mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis holbrooki, inhabiting the stream below the effluent discharge exhibits abnormal sexuality. All females are strongly masculinized, displaying both physical secondary sex characters and reproductive behavior of males. Males exhibit precocious development of physical secondary sex characters and reproductive behavior. Elevenmile Cr. above the paper-mill effluent, as well as tributaries to this creek, all contain Gambusia with normal secondary sex characters. This evidence strongly suggests that some yet unidentified chemical or combination of chemicals associated with the paper-mill effluent exerts a strong androgenic effect upon this population. This constitutes the first report of possible environmentally-induced masculinization involving a total natural population of vertebrates.
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