Transference of metals in the soil‐food chain system:   of Caspian Sea sturgeons

Aim. Identification of metal transference characteristics in components of the ecosystem of the north‐western part of the Caspian Sea.   

Material and Methods. Sampling was carried out according to generally accepted  methods and the determination of heavy metals was carried out by atomic absorption spectroscopy using an atomic absorption spectrometer with electro‐thermal  atomization MGA‐915 MD.   

Results. In studying the migration of trace elements in the trophic chains of the  Caspian Sea sturgeon species it was found that: (a) chromium, manganese and iron  do not accumulate along the trophic chain researched; (b) accumulation of lead and  cobalt above the trophic level occupied by benthic invertebrates did not occur; (c)  cadmium, nickel and copper were accumulated primarily by benthic organisms,  while cadmium and nickel accumulated in the kidneys of Russian and Persian sturgeons and copper accumulated in the liver of both species (d) bioaccumulation of  zinc occurs sequentially in the links: soil‐water‐benthic invertebrates‐benthophage  fish (in Russian and Persian sturgeons in their kidneys, liver and muscles) and (e)  mercury migrates along the links of the food chain, accumulation coefficients increasing progressively in the system: soil‐Didacna mollusc‐benthophage fish (in  Russian and Persian sturgeons in their kidneys, liver and muscles).   

Conclusion. The accumulation of heavy metals from water amongst aquatic organisms depends on the properties of the metal, its involvement in biochemical processes, species, biological status and the nature of abiotic living conditions. 

1. Chujko E.V., Abdusamadov A.S. Features of migration of heavy metals in the northern Caspian ecosystem. South of Russia: ecology, development, 2013, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 110‐116. (In Russian) Doi: 10.18470/1992‐1098‐2013‐3110‐116

2. Perevoznikov M.A., Bogdanova E.A. Tyazhelyye metally v presnovodnykh ekosistemakh [Heavy metals in freshwater ecosystems]. St. Petersburg, GosNIORH Publ., 1999, 228 p. (In Russian)

3. Vinogradov A.P. Khimicheskiy sostav organizmov morya [Chemical composition of sea organisms]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 2001, 620 p. (In Russian)

4. Kovekovdova L.T. Otsenka mikroelementnogo sostava otdel'nykh vidov promyslovykh gidrobiontov Yaponskogo i Okhotskogo morey [An Assessment of the micro elemental composition of individual species of commercial hydrobionts of the Seas of Japan and Okhotsk]. Materialy nauchnoi konferentsii «Sovremennoe sostoyanie vodnyh bioresursov», Vladivostok, 25‐27 marta 2008 [Proceedings of the scientific conference "The current state of aquatic biological resources", Vladivostok, 25‐27 March 2008]. Vladivostok, 2010, pp. 551‐555. (In Russian)

5. Davydova O.A., Klimov E.S., Vaganova E.S., Vaganov A.S. Vliyaniye fiziko‐khimicheskikh faktorov na soderzhaniye tyazhelykh metallov v vodnykh ekosistemakh [The influence of physicochemical factors on heavy metal content in aquatic ecosystems]. Ulyanovsk, UlGTU Publ., 2014, 167 p. (In Russian)

6. Es'kov E.K., Zubkov V.M., Belozubova N.Yu., Bolotov B.N. Content and migration of heavy metals in components of ecosystems of Volgograd reservoir. Agrarnaya nauka [Agrarian Science]. 2015, no. 1, pp. 14‐15. (In Russian)

7. Chaplygin V.A., Ershova T.S., Zaitsev V.F. The contents of some trace elements in the aquatic organisms of the Caspian Sea. South of Russia: ecology, development, 2017, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 138‐145. (In Russian) Doi: 10.18470/1992‐1098‐2017‐3‐138‐145

8. Chaplygin W.A., Tanasova A.S., Ershova T.S., Zaitsev V.F. Bentosnyye organizmy – kontsentratory nekotorykh elementov v ekosisteme Kaspiyskogo moray [Benthic organisms as concentrators of some elements in the ecosystem of the Caspian Sea]. Materialy XX Yubileynoy Mezhdunarodnoy nauchnoy konferentsii «Biologicheskoye raznoobraziye Kavkaza i Yuga Rossii», Makhachkala, 6‐8 noyabrya 2018 [Proceedings of the XX Anniversary International Scientific Conference "Biological Diversity of the Caucasus and Southern Russia", Makhachkala, 6‐8 November 2018]. Makhachkala, 2018, pp. 627‐630. (In Russian)

9. Ostroumov S.A. Role of organisms in the regulation of migrations of chemical elements and transfer of matter in ecosystems. Ekologiya promyshlennogo proizvodstva [Industrial Ecology]. 2010, no. 3, pp. 26‐31. (In Russian)

10. Kovekovdova L.T., Simokon M.V. Rtut' v donnykh otlozheniyakh i promyslovykh gidrobiontakh zaliva Petra Velikogo (Yaponskoye more) [Mercury in bottom sediments and commercial aquatic organisms of Peter the Great Bay (Sea of Japan)]. Materialy Mezhdunarodnogo simpoziuma «Rtut' v biosfere: ekologo‐geokhimicheskiye aspekty», Moskva, 7‐9 sentyabrya 2010 [Proceedings of the International Symposium “Mercury in the Biosphere: Ecological and Geochemical Aspects”, Moscow, 7–9 September 2010]. Moscow, 2010, pp. 233‐238. (In Russian)

11. Molodtsova A.I., Polyaninova A.A. Feeding of sturgeons in the Caspian Sea. Voprosy rybolovstva [Problems of Fisheries]. 2009, vol. 10, no. 4 (40), pp. 718‐740. (In Russian)

12. Tikhonova E.Yu. Osobennosti pitaniya russkogo i persidskogo osetra v Severnom Kaspii [Feeding habits of Russian and Persian sturgeons in the Northern Caspian Sea]. Materialy Mezhdunarodnoy nauchnoy konferentsii «Rybokhozyaystvennyye vodoyemy Rossii – fundamental'nyye i prikladnyye issledovaniya», Sankt‐Peterburg, 6‐10 oktyabrya 2014 [Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference "Fishing waters of Russia ‐ basic and applied research", St. Petersburg, 6‐10 October 2014]. St. Petersburg, 2014, pp. 738‐743. (In Russian)

13. Guseinova S.A., Gadzhiev A.A. Concentration of toxic ingredients (haevy metals and aromatic hydrocarbons) in organs and tissues of hydrobionts in central Caspian district. South of Russia: ecology, development, 2013, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 61‐65. (In Russian) Doi: 10.18470/1992‐10982013‐3‐61‐65

14. Zaitsev V.F., Ershova T.S., Chaplygin W.A., Tanasova A.S., Nikolenkov A.A. Soderzhaniye nekotorykh metallov v zven'yakh troficheskoy seti Kaspiyskogo moray [The content of some metals in the links of the food web of the Caspian Sea]. Materialy X Mezhdunarodnoy biogeokhimicheskoy shkoly «Sovremennyye problemy sostoyaniya i biogeokhimicheskoy evolyutsii taksonov biosfery», Moskva, 13‐15 iyunya 2017 [Proceedings of the X International Biogeochemical School "Modern Problems of the State and Biogeochemical Evolution of Biosphere Taxa", Moscow, 13‐15 June 2017]. Moscow, 2017, pp. 198‐205. (In Russian)

15. Chaplygin V.A., Tanasova A.S., Ershova T.S., Zaitsev V.F. The study of peculiarities of accumulation of zinc and mercury by aquatic organisms of the Caspian Sea. Nauchnyye trudy Dal'rybvtuza [Scientific works of Dalrybvtuz]. 2018, vol. 45, no. 2, pp. 40‐45. (In Russian)