Mercury cycles at levels three- to five-fold higher today than the pre-Industrial era, resulting in global contamination of ecosystems. In the western United States (U.S.), mercury mobilization has led to widespread production of methylmercury (MeHg), a potent, bioaccumulating neurotoxin, which has resulted in fish consumption advisories across all states. Mountain regions are particularly sensitive to continued mercury contamination as they receive higher rates of atmospheric deposition, compared to lower elevations, and have aquatic ecosystems on the landscape conducive to MeHg production. In this paper, we focus on the U.S. Rocky Mountain region and synthesize: (1) current knowledge regarding the mercury cycle; (2) impacts of climate change on the mercury cycle connected to hydrology and wildfire; and (3) future research priorities for informing mercury research and regulation. Studies on the interactions between mercury contamination and climate change in mountain ecosystems is still nascent. We use the findings from this synthesis to summarize the following research needs: (1) quantify sources of mercury in wet and dry deposition, as these pathways dictate mercury exposure and toxicity, and are shifting with climate change; (2) investigate MeHg in mountain aquatic ecosystems, which are important pathways of human mercury exposure and provide food resources and habitat to local wildlife; and (3) examine the disproportionate impact of mercury contamination on indigenous communities through community-led research. Although we focus on the Rocky Mountains for this review, the findings are applicable to semi-arid mountain ecosystems globally and must be prioritized to promote the health of ecosystems and people everywhere.

如今的汞循环水平比前工业时代高出三到五倍，导致全球生态系统受到污染。在美国西部，汞动员导致甲基汞 (MeHg) 的广泛产生，这是一种强效的生物蓄积性神经毒素，导致各州都发布了鱼类消费建议。山区对持续的汞污染特别敏感，因为与低海拔地区相比，山区的大气沉降率更高，并且其景观上的水生生态系统有利于甲基汞的生产。在本文中，我们重点关注美国落基山脉地区并综合：（1）当前有关汞循环的知识；(2) 气候变化对与水文和野火相关的汞循环的影响；(3) 为汞研究和监管提供信息的未来研究重点。关于山区生态系统中汞污染与气候变化之间相互作用的研究仍处于起步阶段。我们利用该综合的结果总结了以下研究需求：（1）量化湿沉积和干沉积中汞的来源，因为这些途径决定了汞的暴露和毒性，并且随着气候变化而变化；（2）调查山区水生生态系统中的甲基汞，该生态系统是人类汞暴露的重要途径，并为当地野生动物提供食物资源和栖息地；(3) 通过社区主导的研究来审查汞污染对土著社区造成的过度影响。尽管我们这次审查的重点是落基山脉，但研究结果适用于全球半干旱山区生态系统，必须优先考虑促进各地生态系统和人民的健康。