Effects of pulp mill effluents on vertebrae of fourhorn sculpin,Myoxocephalus quadricornis, bleak,Alburnus alburnus, and perch,Perca fluviatilis

1988 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 789-797 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. -E. Bengtsson ◽  
A. Bengtsson ◽  
U. Tj�rnlund
1988 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bengt-Erik Bengtsson

In the Gulf of Bothnia the fourhorn sculpin (Myoxocephalus quadricornis) demonstrated elevated levels of deformed spine and/or vertebrae in areas polluted by bleached kraft mill effluents (BKME). Laboratory tests confirmed a correlation between the observed defects and BKME, diluted about 200-1000 times. Analysis of mechanical parameters (strength, elasticity etc) and chemical composition (Ca, P, collagen, proline, hydroxyproline) of single vertebrae confirmed the effects of BKME on bone characteristics in feral and laboratory exposed fourhorn sculpin. Similar effects were recorded also for feral perch (Perca fluviatilis) caught in the vicinity of a pulp mill and bleak (Alburnus alburnus) exposed to various BKME in the laboratory. After about 4 1/2 months of exposure to 0.1 and 0.5 mg tetrachloro-1,2-benzoquinone/L fourhorn sculpin demonstrated vertebral deformities and aberrant mechanical properties of vertebrae. The results are discussed in relation to results obtained from feral fish exposed to BKME and fish exposed to BKME in the laboratory. The recorded effects are suggested to be the results of long-term metabolic dysfunction, leading also to other serious effects in the organism.


1988 ◽  
Vol 45 (9) ◽  
pp. 1525-1536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommy Andersson ◽  
Lars Förlin ◽  
Jan Härdig ◽  
Åke Larsson

An extensive trial to examine physiological and biochemical changes in perch (Perca fluviatilis) inhabiting coastal waters polluted by bleached kraft mill effluents (BKME) has been carried out. The investigations were performed at four different times of year. Fish from a reference site and from sampling sites 2, 4.5, 8, and 10 km from the discharge point were examined. The results of the investigation show profound effects of BKME on several fundamental biochemical and physiological functions. Typical symptoms in perch from the polluted areas were reduced gonad growth, enlarged liver, and very strong induction of certain cytochrome P-450-dependent enzyme activities in the liver. Elevated levels of ascorbic acid in liver tissue and abnormal carbohydrate metabolism reflect the effluent's ability to cause metabolic disorders. Marked effects on the white blood cell pattern indicate a suppressed immune defence. Alterations in the red blood cell status and in the ion balance suggest that the demand for oxygen by certain tissues was increased and that gill function was impaired, respectively. The toxic effects were most pronounced in fish living up to 4.5 km from the discharge point, but some disturbances (e.g. cytochrome P-450 induction, reduced gonad size, and hematological alterations) were observed in fish caught as far as 8–10 km from the kraft bleach plant.


1991 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 1181-1187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Böhling ◽  
Richard Hudd ◽  
Hannu Lehtonen ◽  
Peter Karås ◽  
Erik Neuman ◽  
...  

Variations in the year-class strength of perch (Perca fluviatilis) were analyzed among 23 populations in Baltic coastal areas distributed between 57 and 66°N using the age distribution in catches. In spite of large differences in abiotic and biotic factors, the variations in year-class strength were similar in 14 of these areas. The similarities could be attributed to large-scale weather variations influencing water temperature. Year-class strength was shown to be correlated with an index based on temperature and day length during the whole first year of life. In two of the nine deviating populations, perch nursery areas are situated in small nearshore freshwaters, where fluctuations in the water level may be more important for recruitment than temperature variations. The other deviating areas were exposed to environmental disturbances, i.e. acidification, oxygen deficits, pulp mill effluents, and thermal discharge, which obviously affected recruitment in a decisive way.


1991 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Karås ◽  
Erik Neuman ◽  
Olof Sandström

The dynamics of a Baltic perch (Perca fluviatilis) population were studied in a bleached pulp mill effluent area on the Swedish coast. Recruitment was seriously affected, as larval and fry abundances were very low. Studies of spawning on artificial substrates demonstrated that sufficient numbers of eggs were deposited even in the most effluent-exposed parts of the study area. No increased egg mortality could be noted, but at the stage close to hatching about 10% of the embryos were observed to be malformed, generally having sharp bends in the posterior part of the spinal cord. Exposed embryos were generally smaller than reference fishes, both when length and weight data were compared. Larval samplings provided evidence for high mortality at or very close to hatching. Food and feeding conditions appeared to be of little importance for mortality. Two mortality causes were suggested: chronic failure of parental reproductive systems and/or acute toxicity to embryo or early larvae.


1994 ◽  
Vol 28 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 189-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Lindesjöö ◽  
Jan Thulin ◽  
Bengt-Erik Bengtsson ◽  
Ulla Tjärnlund

Author(s):  
Boris G. Kotegov ◽  

In 22 small anthropogenic reservoirs with an area of 0.4 to 62 ha located in the territory of the Udmurt Republic, individuals of different fish species were captured and water samples were taken in late spring for analysis of NO3–, NO2– and NH4+ content. In many reservoirs, concentrations of ammonium exceed the maximum permissible according to the fishing standards for water quality, and in some this is also the case with nitrites. Ponds with zooplanktophages (bleak Alburnus alburnus (L.) and belica Leucaspius delineates (Heckel)) present in fish communities were statistically significantly different in the increased content of total dissolved mineral nitrogen from reservoirs where these two fish species were not registered. In perch and roach reservoirs, the numerical proportion of river perch Perca fluviatilis was negatively and statistically significantly related to the level of their contamination with nitrogen ionic forms.


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