ESTIMATION OF HEAVY METAL EXPOSURE IN CAPTIVE FACILITIES OF AFRICAN LION (PANTHERA LEO)

Abstract

Conservation of wildlife is of prime importance for human beings. However, rapid industrialization, urbanization and other anthropogenic activities are polluting the environment. All these factors are responsible for human health deterioration and also affect animals by threatening and extinction of various species. The present study was conducted to detect heavy metal exposure of African lion (Panthera leo) found in Lahore zoo (site1) and Safari zoo (site2). Different samples such as feed (fresh meat and leftover meat), fecal, soil, and water were collected twice in a week for a month and analyzed for heavy metal contamination. The quantification of different heavy metals such as, Chromium (Cr), Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), Zinc (Zn) and Copper (Cu) were carried out by atomic absorption spectroscopy. The highest concentrations of heavy metals such as 42.32, 25.67, 13.13, 20.03 and 6.67 mg/Kg (site1) and 32.33, 18.67, 7.80, 13.33 and 5.34 mg/Kg (site2) for Cu, Cr, Zn, Ni, and Pb was observed respectively in soil of both sites. While, the least amount of 0.2, 0.13, 0.0, 0.37, 0.73 mg/L and 0.13, 0.26, 0.033, 0.39 and 0.66 mg/L for Cu, Cr, Zn, Ni, and Pb was noticed in water samples. All metals such as Cu, Zn, Ni were found in higher concentration in feed samples as1.23, 19.37, 0.36 mg/Kg (site1) and 16.32, 19.47 ,0.13 mg/Kg (site2) and reflecting in fecal samples except Pb and Cr that was higher in fecal samples as 1.46 and 2.2 mg/Kg (site1) and 0.85 and 0.87 mg/Kg (site2) than feed (Pb and Cr noticed as 1.3 and 0.87mg/Kg (site1) and 0.83and 0.69mg/Kg (site2)). The results were statistically analyzed using correlation and a positive correlation at p-value 0.999 with 0.01 significance level was observed for feed and fecal samples. It was finally concluded that the metallic concentration in feed was reflected in fecal samples. Furthermore, feces can be used as a good non-invasive method for the estimation of heavy metal exposure.