Sediment toxicity testing: a bioassay approach using the amphipod Corophium volutator and the polychaete Arenicola marina

In this study, the amphipod Corophium volutator and the polychaete Arenicola marina were evaluated as test organisms for use in sediment toxicity bioassays by adapting standard protocols developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and US Army Corps of Engineers (COE) (1991) and Thain et al. (1994). Although these species have begun to be used for the assessment of the toxicity of marine and estuarine sediments, the detailed ecotoxicologies of these species are not well documented. In particular, the effects of specific contaminants of known concentrations on these species in this bioassay context are not known. Here, we report experiments carried out on both species using clean intertidal sediment contaminated with copper, zinc and cadmium. The results show clear dose-dependant effects of each metal on the survival and behaviour of both species, demonstrating the bioassay has considerable potential. However, the toxicity of copper was quite different for the two species and it is recommended that several taxa should be employed in such bioassays. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science BN.