United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Health and Environmental Assessment Washington, DC 20460 Research and Development EPA/600/SR-93/187 November 1994 Project Summary Wildlife Exposure Factors Handbook Margaret McVey and Susan Braen Norton The Wildlife Exposure Factors Hand- book is a compendium of data and ref- erences for conducting exposure and risk assessments for wildlife species exposed to toxic chemicals in their en- vironment. We hope that this project will (1) promote the application of risk assessment methods to wildlife spe- cies, (2) foster a consistent approach to wildlife risk assessments, and (3) increase the accessibility of the litera- ture applicable to these assessments. This Project Summary was developed by EPA's Office of Health and Environ- mental Assessment, Washington, DC, to announce key findings of the re- search project that is fully documented in a separate report of the same title (see Project Report ordering informa- tion at back). Purpose The purpose of the Handbook is to pro- vide a convenient source of information and an analytic framework to facilitate screening-level risk assessments for com- mon wildlife species. These screening-level risk assessments may be used to support site-specific decisions (e.g., for hazardous waste sites), to support the development of water quality or other media-specific criteria for limiting environmental levels of toxic substances to protect wildlife spe- cies, or to focus research and monitoring efforts. Contents The Handbook primarily summarizes values for parameters useful for the expo- sure assessment component of risk as- sessment. In addition, data provided in the Handbook on population parameters (e.g., birth and death rates) may be useful for placing estimates of risks in a broader ecological context. Values and extrapola- tion methods required for the toxicity as? sessment component are not covered in this Handbook. In addition no chemical- specific parameters (e.g., bioavailability factors) are provided. Species This Handbook focuses on a selected group of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles. Fish and aquatic or terrestrial in- vertebrates were not included in the cur- rent effort. We do not intend to imply that risk assessments for wildlife should be restricted to the species described here, or should always be conducted for these species. In addition, the species included in the Handbook have broad geographic ranges, and the parameter values pre- sented may not be representative for all parts of their ranges. Organization Section 1 provides an overview of the Handbook. Section 2 presents values for the exposure factors for the selected spe- cies and brief descriptions of relevant as- pects of their natural history. Contents of Section 2: Species Profiles For 34 Selected Species (Table 1): • Description of natural history • List of similar species • Exposure factor values (Table 2) • Selected bibliography The summary for each species includes an introduction to the general taxonomic group, a qualitative description of the spe- cies, tabulated values for the exposure factors, a list of similar species, and a selected bibliography for that species. Section 3 provides allometric models that may be used to estimate various ex- Printedon Recycled Paper ------- posure factors on the basis of body size. Section 3 also provides equations for esti- mating food ingestion rates on the basis of metabolic rate and diet. Contents of Section 3: Allometrlc Equations • Food ingestion rates • Water intake rates • Inhalation rates • Surface areas • Metabolic rates The Handbook includes an appendix that presents all of the parameter values identified in our literature survey, with more details concerning sample size, methods and qualifying information than listed in the main Handbook. Section 4 provides common equations used to estimate exposure of wildlife spe- cies. Section 4 also discusses available information on soil and sediment inges- tion by wildlife species. Contents of Section 4: Exposure Equations • General exposure equations • Drinking water • Diet • Soil and sediment ingestion • Air • Dermal exposure • Caloric and water content of various diets • Analysis of uncertainty Table 1. Species included in EPA's Wildlife Exposure Factors Handbook Birds Great Blue Heron Canada Goose Mallard Lesser Scaup Ospray Red-tailed Hawk Bald Eagle American Kestrel Northern Bobwhite American Woodcock Spotted Sandpiper Herring Gull Belted Kingfisher Marsh Wren American Robin Mammals Short-tailed Shrew Red Fox Raccoon Mink River Otter Harbor Seal Deer Mouse Prairie Vole Meadow Vole Muskrat Eastern Cottontail Reptiles and Amphibians Snapping Turtle Painted Turtle Eastern Box Turtle Racer Snake Water Snake Eastern Newt Green Frog Bullfrog Tables. Exposure Factors Included in the Handbook Normalizing & Contact Rate Factors Dietary Composition Population Dynamics Timing of Seasonal Activities body weight metabolic rate surface area water ingestion rate inhalation rate food ingestion rate by season: spring summer winter fall by habitat/ location home range size population density litter/clutch per year growth rates annual mortality rates mating nesting/egglaying parturition/ hatching hibernation dispersal migration ------- ------- Margaret McVey is with ICF, Inc., Fairfax, VA 22031 Susan Braen Norton is the EPA Project Manager (see below). The complete report, entitled "Wildlife Exposure Factors Handbook, Volume I: (Order No. PB94-174778; Cost: $61.00, subject to change); Volume II: (Order No. PB94-177789; Cost $52.00, subject to change) will be available only from: National Technical Information Service 5285 Port Royal Road Springfield, VA 22161 Telephone: 703-487-4650 The EPA Project Manager can be contacted at: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (8603) 401 M Street, SW Washington, DC 20460 United States Environmental Protection Agency Center for Environmental Research Information Cincinnati, OH 45268 Official Business Penalty for Private Use $300 EPA/600/SR-93/187 BULK RATE POSTAGE & FEES PAID EPA PERMIT No. G-35 ------- |