Historical record of trace elements (1983-2007) in scales from Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar): Study of past metal contamination from a copper mine (Ulla River, NW Iberian Peninsula).
Chemosphere
; 188: 18-24, 2017 Dec.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-28865789
ABSTRACT
The chemical composition of fish scales has been reported to reflect the composition of the waters in which fish have been resident, therefore having the potential for the assessment of temporal trends in watershed water quality. Here we studied the historical (1983-2007) metal contamination in the Ulla river (NW Iberian Peninsula) watershed - impacted by a Cu mine that was in operation from 1973 until 1988 - by means of the analysis of major and trace elements in salmon scales. Results indicate the presence of a significant contamination for several metals (especially Cu, Au, Ag, Sb, Zn) during the 1980's. Concentrations of Cu in salmon scales during the influence of the mine (1983-1990) were 20 ± 5 µg/g, exceeding the values for the recent years (1995-2007) 1.8 ± 0.4 µg/g. Concentrations for Au in these two periods were 31 ± 12 and 2.1 ± 1.2 ng/g; for Ag 21 ± 4 and 4 ± 2 ng/g; for Sb 48 ± 21 and 15 ± 4 ng/g; and for Zn 133 ± 16 and 93 ± 10 µg/g. The estimated concentrations of dissolved copper during the operation of the mine indicate a scenario of toxic effects due to sensory impairments in the salmon, and a reduction in scales calcification. The results presented here demonstrate that the analysis of trace elements in archived fish scales is a suitable tool for the reconstruction of the past contamination in aquatic systems, and it can be also used as a non-lethal approach for biomonitoring purposes.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Oligoelementos
/
Monitoreo del Ambiente
/
Cobre
/
Salmo salar
/
Ríos
Límite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Chemosphere
Año:
2017
Tipo del documento:
Article