Abstract
An incubation experiment of juvenile crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) following a three- level treatment design approach was performed to assess the effect of different heavy metal concentrations on their life history traits (lifespan, growth, moult and feeding activity). The aims were to: (1) address the response of the life traits; (2) check for the correlation between heavy metal concentrations in crayfish whole bodies with the ones of the experimental solutions; (3) analyse the variation of crayfish carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes signatures grown under these treatments. Treatments were: control or absence of pollutants (C); low level contamination (L) similar to those found in the water of the Guadiamar River (SW, Spain) one year after the Aznalcollar mine accident, and high level contamination (H) maximum concentrations of metals measured in the water of the river after the spill. The study concludes that the H treatment produced lethal effects on juveniles of crayfish, whereas those undergoing the L treatment showed less marked effects. Crayfish’s juveniles grown in L treatment seemed able to regulate and manage this range of pollution while maintaining their biological traits. Juvenile’s capacity to bioaccumulate toxic substances also changes with the nature of the particular metals. The reduction in lifespan was mainly influenced by Cu, Zn and As. 13 C of C and juveniles from L treatment had similar values but different from those individuals of H treatment, reflecting the isotopic signature of the food source used (liver), and were also influenced by the concentration of Cu and As.
Highlights
River systems are continuously subjected to anthropogenic disturbances in most parts of the world
The experiment lasted for nineteen weeks (133 days) and was concluded when all crayfish in the ‘polluted’ treatments (L and H) were dead
Most individuals of L treatment died before the week 12th and from that time until the end of the experiment there was only one crayfish that survived, while in treatment H all the animals died at the 11th week
Summary
River systems are continuously subjected to anthropogenic disturbances in most parts of the world Typical examples of these alterations are pollution and waste disposal, bank alterations, riparian simplification, simplification of the river network, water abstraction and the introduction of alien species. The ecological functions of the river were heavily affected [3,4] Following this catastrophic event, urgent action was undertaken to clean the soil and, a research-based management project was launched by the regional authorities aimed at the restoration of the Guadiamar Basin as a whole (The Green Corridor Protected Area). Urgent action was undertaken to clean the soil and, a research-based management project was launched by the regional authorities aimed at the restoration of the Guadiamar Basin as a whole (The Green Corridor Protected Area) This project actively monitored the contamination of water, sediments and different bioindicators from 1999 until 2008. This exotic species was introduced into the Lower Guadalquivir Basin (SW Spain) for commercial purposes, from Louisiana (US), in 1974 [5] and later became widespread throughout Spain and the other European countries [6,7]
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