Heavy metal accumulation in tissue/organs of a sea cucumber, Holothuria leucospilota

Abstract

Holothuria leucospilota Brandt, the large black sea cucumber, is a non-selective deposit feeder, and is commonly found in the bottom of shallow waters in Hong Kong, where the sediments are often polluted with heavy metals. This study was designed to test the possibility of heavy metal accumulation by the sea cucumber at two sites in Hong Kong. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer was used to measure Cu and Zn concentrations in various tissue/organs of the animal as well as in the sediments. The result indicated that H. leucospilota accumulated zinc in the longitudinal muscle bands (97.27–98.07 ppm in dry weight) and in the respiratory tree (83.92–89.64 ppm in dry weight). Copper concentrations in these two organs were much lower than that of zinc. After the animals were kept in the aquarium without sediment for40 days, zinc concentration of the longitudinal muscle and respiratory tree decreased by 48% and 39%respectively whereas copper concentration remained unchanged. The concentrations of zinc and copper in the sediment at the two sites differed significantly but the metal level in the animals from the two sites were similar, suggesting that this sea cucumber was not an ideal bioindicator of heavy metal pollution in the sediment.