2019 Volume 22 Issue 2 Pages 41-52
In the present study, we have examined whether the predicted bioavailability for heavy metals in sediments obtained through chemical analysis reflected the actual accumulation by the polychaete, Perinereis nuntia. In this study, P. nuntia was exposed to sediments collected from two sites of Kagoshima Bay, Japan, for 28 days. The polychaete adsorbed metals such as copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) from sediments. Biomagnification factors from sediment to polychaete for Cu and Zn were 0.002–0.052 and 0.062–0.066, respectively, and Zn tended to be in higher concentrations in polychaete than Cu. Additionally, we measured metal content in geochemical fractions to predict the bioavailability through chemical analysis and was found to be 2–4% for Cu, and 16–21% for Zn. The prediction of bioavailability through chemical analysis could roughly reflect the actual absorbance of metals in the polychaete. Therefore, we conclude that the prediction of metal bioavailability through geochemical speciation is useful to reliably estimate actual bioaccumulation in the benthic organism.
