Abstract
This study was conducted to assess the health of a subtidal marine sculpin, Myoxocephalus scorpius, naturally exposed in a shipping terminal where polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) had been spilled, as well as that of others sculpins after decontamination in the laboratory for 16 weeks. Reference samples were captured at a pristine site upcurrent from the contaminated terminal. Examination of field samples caught by scuba divers showed external and toxicopathic lesions in several tissues; decreased body condition and organ indices; and decreased hemoglobin and lymphocyte levels. No difference in the diversity of parasites was observed between reference and contaminated samples, but abundance was generally greater in fish from the latter site. Although the total number of species of parasites decreased in both groups of depurated sculpins, the abundance of infections on gill and gall bladder was significantly greater in fish from the polluted site. These results suggest that M. scorpius was affected adversely by PCBs and that its responses are ecologically significant as a bioindicator species in degraded habitats. Moreover, remediation might not mitigate the observed anomalies in fish inhabiting the impacted site.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada. I am grateful to S. Wall for preparing the manuscript for publication and to two anonymous referees for suggestions for revising the manuscript.
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Khan, R.A. Chronic Exposure and Decontamination of a Marine Sculpin (Myoxocephalus scorpius) to Polychlorinated Biphenyls Using Selected Body Indices, Blood Values, Histopathology, and Parasites as Bioindicators. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 60, 479–485 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-010-9547-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-010-9547-9