Lead, cadmium, copper and iron in earthworms from roadside sites

Abstract

Three species of earthworm— Lumbricus terrestris (Linnaeus); Lumbricus rubellus (Hoffmeister) and Allolobophora chlorotica (savigny)—were collected from sites adjacent to the A660 road and a city recreational area in Leeds, from the grass verges beside the A1 road and a farm service road in West Yorkshire, and from a traffic-free site near Oban, Scotland. Results from atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) showed that lead, cadmium and copper accumulated in these species taken from these sites. Only lead seemed to show any significant interspecific variation ( p < 0·05), amounts being greater in A. chlorotica than in L. terrestris. Iron was found in faeces in amounts significantly greater than those found in tissue samples and thus was not accumulated. Differences in metal uptake from the various sites may relate to differing soil chemistry, differing traffic density, and possibly other factors such as pollution from industrial or other wastes.