Abstract
In this study the impact of a high contamination of the soil with the heavy metals cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) as well as with organochlorine compounds (PCB) on selected health status parameters in free-living roe deer was examined. In the second part the parasitic infestation and histopathological findings in the liver and kidney were investigated. As in the first part the results from roe deer from extremely highly polluted areas (regions of Bitterfeld [B] and Harz [H]) were compared with those of nearly nonpolluted areas (regions in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern [MVP] and Schleswig Holstein [SH]). In the unpolluted areas roe deer show significantly more abomasal helminths than in the polluted areas. Moreover, in the unpolluted areas a greater number of roe deer have a higher worm burden than in the polluted areas. A possible explanation for this correlation could be a higher moisture content in the soil of the SH and MVP regions, because an increased moisture content positively effects the development of external stages (e. g. eggs, larvae) of several species of abomasal helminths in roe deer (e. g. Ostertagia spp). The unpolluted areas (MVP, SH) have a proportion of 13.4% water space whereas in the polluted areas there is only 5.6%. However, within the group of one-year-old roe deer, individuals with a higher Cd contamination and a higher worm burden at the same time can be found more frequently. The incomplete immune competence in this age group could possibly explain why one-year-old roe deer react particularly sensitively. Concerning histopathological findings, lesions of the renal cortex such as tubulonephrosis, interstitial infiltration and glomerulopathy have been reported to be associated with toxic effects of cadmium. Roe deer of all three age groups showed several of these alterations, which, however, were not very pronounced. Even though, histopathological findings were observed in approximately half of the animals in each group. However, these findings were not statistically correlated to the measured cadmium levels. The two parameters gave no hint of a reduced health status of roe deer due to cadmium contamination. © 2001, Blackwell Wissenschafts-Verlag.