Abstract
Balanus balanoides (L.) collected from an area with high heavy-metal run-off contained two different types of granule within the parenchyma cells of the prosoma. X-ray microprobe analysis shows one to be the familiar “zinc” granule made up of concentric layers and giving major peaks for phosphorus and zinc, and the other to be homogeneous and giving peaks for sulphur and copper. This latter granule is designated the “copper” granule. Whilst “zinc” granules are known to be composed of inorganic phosphate, various tests on “copper” granules in sections and in a granule-rich pellet have shown that the copper is probably complexed with organic matter. The tests also demonstrated the relatively, insoluble (inert) nature of these granules. Although “zinc” and “copper” granules were present together in the prosoma, atomic absorption analyses of whole bodies (prosoma+thorax) have shown the level of zinc (50.28 μg/mg dry weight) to be much higher than that of copper (3.75 μg/mg dry weight).
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