Transfer of selenium from prey to predators in a simulated terrestrial food chain

Abstract

Little is known about the accumulation and effects of selenium in reptiles. We developed a simplified laboratory food chain where we fed commercial feed laden with seleno- d, l-methionine (30 μg/g dry mass) to crickets ( Acheta domestica) for 5–7 d. Se-enriched crickets (∼15 μg/g Se [dry mass]) were fed to juvenile male and female lizards ( Sceloporus occidentalis) for 98 d while conspecifics were fed uncontaminated crickets. Lizards fed contaminated prey accumulated Se concentrations ranging from 9.3 (in female carcass) to 14.1 (in female gonad) μg/g compared to <1.5 μg/g in tissues of controls. Female gonad concentrations approached the highest of thresholds for reproductive toxicity in oviparous vertebrates. However, we observed no consistent effect of dietary treatment on sublethal parameters or survival. Our simplified food chain proved to be an ecologically relevant method of exposing lizards to Se, and forms the foundation for future studies on maternal transfer and teratogenicity of Se.