Use of limpets as alternative to mussels in metal pollution monitoring; application in the Canary Islands.

Metal pollution monitoring programs make use of organisms, such as mussels, as biomonitors to evaluate and compare the metal pollution status of coastal areas worldwide. Despite the widespread distribution of mussels of the genus Mytilus, there are places where these organisms are absent or where their abundance is insufficient for biomonitoring purposes, such as in the Canary Islands (Spain). This study considers the use of limpets of the genus Patella as alternative/complementary species in metal pollution monitoring, and compares the bioaccumulation capacity of mussels and limpets collected simultaneously during several sampling campaigns at 11 sampling sites along the continental Spanish Atlantic coastline.

Sea snail (Hexaplex trunculus) and sea cucumber (Holothuria polii) as potential sentinel species for organic pollutants and trace metals in coastal ecosystems.

The seasonal bioaccumulation of trace metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorinated pesticides (OCPs) in sea snail (Hexaplex trunculus) and sea cucumber (Holothuria polii) from Mar Menor lagoon were characterised. The highest concentrations of p,p'-DDE were detected in the central and south part of Mar Menor lagoon. However, the highest concentrations of metals in sea snail and holothurians were detected in the influence area of El Beal wadi.

An assessment of two decades of trace metals monitoring in wild mussels from the Northwest Atlantic and Cantabrian coastal areas of Spain, 1991-2011.

Since 1991, the Instituto Español de Oceanografía has monitored the concentrations of trace metals in wild mussels from the north (Cantabrian Sea) and northwest (Atlantic) coasts of Spain to define geographical distributions and temporal trends. While Cu, Zn and As concentrations presented fairly uniform geographical distributions, Hg and Pb concentrations were higher in mussels from the Cantabrian sea region as a result of historical anthropogenic activities. Cd, on the other hand, appeared to be more affected by natural processes on the northwest Atlantic coast (i.

Chemometric tools to evaluate the spatial distribution of trace metals in surface sediments of two Spanish rías.

A suite of relevant trace metals (Hg, Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn and Ni) was measured in surface sediment samples to assess the environmental situation of the largest two Atlantic Spanish 'rías' (a form of estuaries, ría of Pontevedra, ROP, and ría of Vigo, ROV). The level of contamination originated by these metals was assessed against international guidelines, the threshold effect, ERL, and the midrange effect, ERM. Six unsupervised and supervised multivariate chemometric techniques were applied to model each ría, compare them and select those metals that characterize the samples.

Comparison of the 2000 and 2005 spatial distributions of heavy metals in wild mussels from the North-Atlantic Spanish coast.

Spatial distributions of Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn in Mytilus galloprovincialis in 41 sampling sites in the North-Atlantic Spanish coast were monitored in 2000 and 2005 to assess the coastal environmental pollution. A pool of mussel soft tissue was prepared using 50 or more individuals representing the available size range. Samples were grounded, homogenised and quantified by atomic absorption spectrometry.