Patterns of trace metal bioaccumulation and trophic transfer in a phytoplankton-zooplankton-small pelagic fish marine food web

Tiphaine Chouvelon (1) , Emilie Strady (2) , Mireille Harmelin-Vivien (2) , Olivier Radakovitch (3) , Christophe Brach-Papa (1) , Sylvette Crochet (1) , Joel Knoery (1) , Emmanuelle Rozuel (1) , Bastien Thomas (1) , Jacek Tronczynski (1) , Jean-François Chiffoleau (1)

1 BE - Unité Biogéochimie et Ecotoxicologie
2 MIO - Institut méditerranéen d'océanologie
3 IRSN/PSE-ENV/SRTE/LRTA - Laboratoire de recherche sur les transferts des radionucléides dans les écosystèmes aquatiques

Trace metal contamination in the European sardine and anchovy food web was investigated in the Gulf of Lions, NW Mediterranean Sea, including seawater and size fractions of plankton. The results highlighted: i) higher and more variable concentrations in the smaller plankton size classes for all metals except cadmium; ii) higher concentrations in anchovy versus sardine for all elements except lead; iii) different patterns of metal bioaccumulation through the food web: cobalt, nickel, copper, silver, lead and zinc displayed continuously decreasing concentrations (with the exception of increased zinc in fish only), while mercury concentrations dropped considerably in larger plankton size classes and rose significantly in fish. Lastly, cadmium concentrations were found to be highest in intermediate plankton size classes, with very low levels in fish. The need to efficiently characterize the biological composition of plankton in order to fully identify its role in the mobilization and transfer of metals was highlighted.

Mots clés: Inorganic elements; Sardina pilchardus; Mediterranean Sea; HEAVY-METALS; SUSPENDED PARTICULATE MATTER; NW MEDITERRANEAN SEA; Size-classed plankton; ATMOSPHERIC DEPOSITION; ACCUMULATION KINETICS; BODY CONDITION; Seawater

Mots clés: Engraulis encrasicolus; PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS; STABLE-ISOTOPE RATIOS; ELEMENT BIOACCUMULATION; SEASONAL DYNAMICS

Domaines: Sciences de l'environnement

Tiphaine Chouvelon, Emilie Strady, Mireille Harmelin-Vivien, Olivier Radakovitch, Christophe Brach-Papa, et al.. Patterns of trace metal bioaccumulation and trophic transfer in a phytoplankton-zooplankton-small pelagic fish marine food web. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2019, 146, pp.1013-1030. ⟨10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.07.047⟩. ⟨hal-02356815⟩