Sponges as sentinels: Patterns of spatial and intra-individual variation in trace metal concentration

► Variation in most metals tested was low (10–14%) within individual sponges. ► Variation in most metals was high (49–98%) in sponges at large spatial scales. ► Sponge size is not a good predictor of metal concentration. ► Fragments of these sponges can be transplanted and show promise as biomonitor...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine pollution bulletin 2012-01, Vol.64 (1), p.80-89
Main Authors: de Mestre, C., Maher, W., Roberts, D., Broad, A., Krikowa, F., Davis, A.R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biomonitors
Brackish
Cadmium
Coastal
Copper
Environmental Monitoring - methods
Lakes
Lead (metal)
Marine
Mercury
Metals - analysis
New South Wales
Porifera
Porifera - chemistry
Spatial variation
Sponge
Sponges
Trace metals
Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis
Water Pollution, Chemical - statistics & numerical data
Zinc
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Summary:► Variation in most metals tested was low (10–14%) within individual sponges. ► Variation in most metals was high (49–98%) in sponges at large spatial scales. ► Sponge size is not a good predictor of metal concentration. ► Fragments of these sponges can be transplanted and show promise as biomonitors. If sponges are to be effective biomonitors we require a better understanding of the spatial scales over which metals vary in these organisms. We determined how concentration of Cd, Zn, Cu, Pb, Hg and Se varied over four spatial scales for two common estuarine sponge species in the Sydney region. We examined variability with a fully nested sampling design; between coastal lakes, within coastal lakes, between sponges and within sponges. Calculation of variance components confirmed that ‘within-sponge’ variation in Cd, Zn, Cu, Pb and Se concentrations were low (1–14%) relative to the two largest spatial scales (49–98%) examined. In contrast, Hg concentrations exhibited marked variability ‘between-sponges’ and were below detection at one location. There was little evidence that sponge size was a good predictor of metal concentration. Taken together, these outcomes confirm that fragments of these sponges could be successfully transplanted and therefore show promise as biomonitors of metal contamination.
ISSN:0025-326X
1879-3363
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.10.020