Occurence of kerosene-like hydrocarbons in the bream, Mylio australis Gunther

Samples of the bream M. australis from an area approximately 4 km north of the Brisbane River mouth have been found to contain a mixture of kerosene-like hydrocarbons. Capillary column gas chromotagraphy and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry permitted the unequivocal identification of a series of n-alkanes in this mixture. The kerosene-like mixture of hydrocarbons is believed to cause a taint in the flesh of the fish.