Toxicity of Nitrite to Fish: A Review

Abstract

Nitrite, an intermediate in the oxidation of ammonium to nitrate, changes hemoglobin to methemoglobin, which does not carry oxygen; nitrite may thus cause anoxia in fish and other aquatic organisms. The published literature on nitrite toxicity to fish, which consists of about 40 papers, shows that the ratio of the 24-h LC50 (concentration lethal to half of the test organisms in 24 h) to the 96-h LC50 has a median value of 2.0 and is fairly uniform across species; toxicity tests of differing duration can therefore be standardized to a common duration. In general, chronic effects are difficult to detect at concentrations below one-fifth of the 96-h LC50. Most fish concentrate nitrite in fresh water; chloride in the external environment offsets the toxicity of nitrite by competing with nitrite for uptake through the chloride cells of the gills. The strength of the chloride effect is greatest for the least-sensitive species and smallest for the most-sensitive species. The addition of 1 mg/L chloride increases the 96-h LC50 by 0.29 to 2.0 mg/L nitrite-N, depending on the species. Bicarbonate also reduces the toxicity of nitrite, but it is less than 1% as effective as chloride. Calcium reduces the toxicity of nitrite, but much less than chloride; the effects of other metal cations have not been studied. Hydrogen ion concentration of the medium has not been shown to have a discrete effect on the toxicity of nitrite except at extreme concentrations uncharacteristic of the environments in which fish ordinarily live. Nitrite toxicity is exacerbated by low oxygen concentrations because nitrite reduces the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. The effects of temperature have not been adequately studied. Very small fish seem less sensitive to nitrite than fish of intermediate or large size. Present evidence suggests that salmonids are among the fishes most sensitive to nitrite; channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus, blue tilapia Tilapia aurea, logperch Percina caprodes, and brook stickleback Culaea inconstans are equally sensitive or slightly less sensitive. The fathead minnow Pimephales promelas, other cyprinids, catostomids, the mottled sculpin Cottus bairdi, and the black bullhead Ictalurus melas are considerably less sensitive. The least-sensitive species tested thus far are the largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides and bluegill Lepomis macrochirus; the largemouth bass does not concentrate nitrite.