Abstract
Selenium concentrations have been measured in sediment, fucoid macroalgae and macroinvertebrates from four estuaries of SW England (Yealm, Plym, Looe, Fal). Sediment concentrations ranged from about 0.4μgg−1 in the Yealm to 1.49μgg−1 at one site in the Plym. Concentrations in Fucus vesiculosus (0.05–0.31μgg−1) and F. ceranoides (0.05–0.51μgg−1) were significantly lower than corresponding concentrations in sediment but there was no correlation between algal and sediment concentrations. Selenium concentrations in Littorina littorea (∼4μgg−1), Hediste diversicolor (2.82–12.68μgg−1), Arenicola marina (∼17μgg−1) and Scrobicularia plana (1.18–6.85μgg−1) were considerably higher than concentrations in macroalga or sediment, suggesting that Se is effectively accumulated from the diet. Although Se concentrations in some invertebrates exceed toxicity thresholds for the diet of predacious birds and fish, no specific evidence for Se toxicity exists in these estuaries.
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