Species-specific bioaccumulation of trace metals among fish species from Xincun Lagoon, South China Sea

Weihua Feng,Haifeng Zhang,Zhifu Wang,Dongrong Zhang,Wenzhuo Zhu,Hengtao Xu

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-77917-y

Weihua Feng, Haifeng Zhang + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-77917-y

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Abstract

Xincun Lagoon is an important fishing area in northern Hainan Island, China. It has long been exposed to pollutants from local sewage, breeding cages and fishing boats, resulting in serious pollution threats to the survival of fish. In this study, we examined the concentrations of seven trace metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Hg, As and Cr) in sixteen economic fish species collected from Xincun Lagoon and their exposed environment (water and sediment). The concentrations of Pb and Zn in the water column were higher than the safety threshold stipulated by Chinese legislation, while the contents of all examined metals in the sediment and fish species were lower than the legislative thresholds set by China and international organizations. The contents of trace metals in the fish species in high trophic levels or those that prefer to live in/on the sediment layer were significantly higher than those in other trophic levels and pelagic/subbenthic fish, these species had homogeneous anthropogenic pollution sources for Cu, Zn, Cd, Hg and As. Our results show that the trace metal contents in fish were mainly affected by trophic level and habitat preference. The contribution of metal exposure from the sediment to metal accumulation in fish was lower than that in water, especially for the Cd and Hg in the sediment. These results provide valuable information for further understanding the species-specific patterns of metal accumulation in fish and the development of targeted conservation measures for the environment and fish consumers.

Highlights

IntroductionTrace metals are released into the ocean from both natural sources (e.g. volcanism, rock erosion, and atmospheric deposition) and anthropogenic sources (e.g. industrial activities, river transportation, shipping, and aquaculture)[1,2]
Trace metals are released into the ocean from both natural sources and anthropogenic sources[1,2]
The high concentrations of zinc in Xincun Lagoon may be attributed to exogenous inputs, such as coastal domestic sewage, domestic waste, shipping activities and cage culture of marine fish

Summary

Introduction

Trace metals are released into the ocean from both natural sources (e.g. volcanism, rock erosion, and atmospheric deposition) and anthropogenic sources (e.g. industrial activities, river transportation, shipping, and aquaculture)[1,2]. The problem of metal pollution in coastal seas has attracted increasing attention, because it can reduce the structural function of marine ecosystems, and because of the health hazards to humans who like to consume s eafood[4]. Copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) are important essential elements and play an important role in the metabolism of living organisms[8] They can produce toxicity in organisms when their contents exceed the safety thresholds, so changes in the contents of these metals in organisms and in their environment require m onitoring[9,10]. The environment of Xincun Lagoon is generally deteriorating, there are few reports on metal monitoring and attention to possible increases in metals concentrations in this area

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