Limpets (Patella spp. Mollusca, Gastropoda) as model organisms for biomonitoring environmental quality. (June 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Pérez, Sara; Sánchez-Marín, Paula; Bellas, Juan; Viñas, Lucía; Besada, Victoria; Fernández, Nuria
• Is Part Of: Ecological indicators. Volume 101(2019)
• Page Start: 150
• Page End: 162
• Publication Date: 2019-06
• Subjects: Patella vulgata -- Patella depressa -- Patella ulyssiponensis -- Mytilus galloprovincialis -- Acute bioassay -- Bioaccumulation; Environmental monitoring -- Periodicals; Environmental management -- Periodicals; Environmental impact analysis -- Periodicals; Environmental risk assessment -- Periodicals; Sustainable development -- Periodicals; 333.71405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.01.016
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1470-160X

Abstract

Highlights: The embryo-larval bioassay with Patella spp. showed sensitivity to Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb, comparable to other marine bioassays. Patella spp. accumulates higher concentrations of Cd, As and Cu than Mytilus sp. Mytilus sp. accumulates higher concentrations of Hg, Zn, Cr and organic contaminants than Patella spp. Accumulation in limpets showed a spatial pattern of contamination similar to that shown by mussels and sediments. Patella spp. comes out as good substitute/complement to mussels for biomonitoring of marine pollution. Abstract: The use of limpets of the genus Patella as indicators of environmental quality is a priori promising, but few data are available in relation to their sensitivity to toxicants or their ability to accumulate pollutants. The aim of this work was to evaluate the use of Patella spp. as model organisms by (1) assessing the sensitivity of limpet embryos to some common pollutants, (2) validating the use of the limpet embryo-larval bioassay using natural sediment samples, and (3) analyzing the presence of pollutants by using Patella spp. as sentinel species. The obtained EC50 values ranged between 33 and 84 µg/L for Cu, 749–1163 for Cd, 317–1103 for Zn and 813–3411 µg/L for Pb; these sensitivity ranges were similar to those of other marine invertebrates used in ecotoxicology. It was not possible to validate the bioassay with natural samples, since the sampled sites did not cause significant toxicity. Patella spp. accumulated metals and organic pollutants in their soft tissues, showing higher concentrations than mussels for some metals (Cd, As and Cu) and lower concentrations for others (Hg, Zn, Cr), as well as for organic pollutants. Furthermore, bioaccumulation in limpets showed a spatial pattern of contamination similar to that shown by mussels and sediments, revealing limpets as a very good substitute/complement to mussels for biomonitoring marine pollution, especially in sites where mussel populations are absent or present at low numbers.