Abstract
As heavy metals are bioaccumulative and toxic in nature, increasing heavy metal levels in the environment is of great concern. The present study was aimed to assess the acute toxicity effects of copper on some behavioral attributes of Filopaludina bengalensis (locally known as ‘Genri’), a freshwater gastropod, under laboratory condition. Exposure to copper (0.50-2.0 ppm) for 96 h resulted in significant mortality. Recorded LC50 value at 96h was 0.586 ppm. The aggregation tendency, crawling activity and mucus secretion were observed at different exposure period upon acute exposure of copper (0.586 ppm).With the advancement of exposure period, gradual deaggregation was observed in snails of copper treated sets. There was statistically significant difference (P <0.01) in aggregation response and foot protrusion response at different span of exposure in copper treated groups. In copper treated sets, a substantial increase (P<0.01) in mucus secretion (%) was evident with time. Foot protrusion and movement was inhibited in copper treated groups. All three responses in the copper treated groups were significantly different (P <0.01) from that of control groups. The behavioral responses observed in this study of Filopaludina bengalensis could be used as biomarkers for copper contamination in any aquatic ecosystems.
Highlights
Indiscriminate water pollution due to urbanization, industrialization and modern agricultural practices alter physical, chemical and biochemical characteristics of water bodies (Indra and Shivaji, 2006)
Acute toxicity of copper revealed that mortality is proportional to the concentration of heavy metal directly
The acute toxicity of copper in Filopaludina bengalensis has been reported in a few studies
Summary
Indiscriminate water pollution due to urbanization, industrialization and modern agricultural practices alter physical, chemical and biochemical characteristics of water bodies (Indra and Shivaji, 2006). Heavy metal pollution in freshwater ecosystem is of great environmental concern in these days because of bioaccumulative and CONTACT Pratyush Ghosh. Non-biodegradable nature of the heavy metals (Walker et al, 2006). The natural sources of heavy metals include weathering of rocks and volcanic eruptions, while various industrial activities and mining are their anthropogenic sources (Ali et al, 2019). Some heavy metals are essential for life but they could impart toxic effects through bioaccumulation (Gobi et al, 2018). Copper is an essential component of different enzymes but toxic for all forms of life at its excessive level (Gawad, 2018)
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