Concentrations of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in the Muscle of Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis) from the US Mid-Atlantic Coast, Near Cape Hatteras, North Carolina: Effects of Lengths with Relevance to the Fish Consumption Advisories

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) concentrations in striped bass (Morone saxatilis) wintering in coastal waters above Cape Hatteras, North Carolina (NC) were evaluated. This contingent was largely comprised of female striped bass, likely captured prior to their Chesapeake Bay spawning run. While traveling southward from PCB-contaminated northern Atlantic Coastal waters, striped bass attain their highest annual growth potential and greatest consumption rates. During this critical time period, PCB accumulation dynamics are in question. In this study, PCB concentration measured in muscle tissue samples of striped bass captured in NC’s coastal waters averaged 153 parts-per-billion; which is below previously reported levels. No significant relationship between PCB concentration and length was also determined. These results support the state of Maryland’s current approach of issuing coastal advisories for striped bass; which limits consumption based on specified lengths, as oppose to the previous “avoid” designation removed in 2011.