Abstract
Several trace metals (Zn, As, Cd, Sb and Hg) have been determined, by neutron activation analysis, in pelagic organisms, mainly crustaceans and fishes, collected mostly off northwest Africa and in the Azores region. Concentrations of mercury (0·06 to 0·38 ppm dry weight) showed no clear trend with trophic level. Organo-mercury analyses on two species showed that the element was present largely in the methyl mercuric form. Concentrations of cadmium, which reached 13 ppm dry weight in Systellaspis deblis and Oplophorus sp., and of arsenic, which averaged 25 ppm dry weight in the crustaceans, tended to decrease in the tissues of fishes. Values for antimony which were all below 0·1 ppm dry weight, showed some indication of a similar trend. Concentrations of mercury in sea water from an adjacent area ranged from 17 to 142 ng/l., the highest concentration occurring in deep water.
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