While it is generally accepted that water hardness affects copper toxicity, the major ions that contribute to water hardness (calcium [Ca] and magnesium [Mg]) may affect copper toxicity differently. This is important because the Ca:Mg ratio in standard laboratory-reconstituted waters often differs from the ratio in natural surface waters. Copper toxicity was assessed for five different aquatic ...

A study was carried out in restored South West Lake and non-restored East Lake, of Beira lake with the objective of determining the species composition, density and distribution of zooplankton. Water was sampled from the surface and at a depth of 1 m, from February to March, 2005 between 0900-1130 h. Three rotifers species; Brachinonus calyciflorus, Keratella tropica, Filinia sp., three cladoce...

Addition of anionic polyacrylamide (PAM) to agricultural irrigation water can dramatically reduce erosion of soils. However, the toxicity of PAM to aquatic life, while often claimed to be low, has not been thoroughly evaluated. Five PAM formulations, including two oil-based products, one water-based product, one granular product and one tablet product, were evaluated for acute and/or chronic to...

We used double-label liquid scintillation techniques to measure the efficiencies with which eight different-sized zooplankton species ingested four cell types relative to a standard cell type (Chlamydomonas). Efficiency ratios (ERs: clearance rate on cell type X / clearance rate on Chlamydomonas) on the three ultraplankton (<5 mum in diameter) cells (a coccoid bacterium and the algae Synechococ...

Selecting the most appropriate test species for sediment and water column assays has been a primary goal for ecotoxicologists. Standard test organisms and established test guidelines exist, but the USEPA-recommended species may not be the most sensitive organisms to anthropogenic inputs. This paper describes preliminary results of toxicity tests with the mayfly, Isonychia bicolor (Ephemeroptera...

This study was conducted in France within the context of waste classification (Hazardous Waste Council Directive 91/689/EEC), and focused on "ecotoxic" property (H14). In 1998, an experimental test strategy was developed to assess ecotoxicological properties of wastes using a battery of six standardized bioassays. This combined direct and indirect approaches integrating two solid-phase tests: e...

The study was conducted in the Capibaribe river estuary in Recife (Brazil) to assess the role played by cladocerans in a eutrophic environment. Samplings were carried out monthly at 4 fixed stations along the estuary from July 1987 to June 1988. Collections were made with a plankton net of 65 micrometers mesh size. Six cladocerans species were registered: Penilia avirostris, Diaphanosoma spinul...

Deltamethrin is a pyrethroid insecticide used extensively to control invertebrate pests on cotton and other crops. It is acutely toxic to nontarget aquatic organisms, but existing toxicity data are mostly from toxicity tests using purified laboratory water that differs greatly from the turbid, high-conductivity rivers in the cotton-growing regions of Australia. The aim of this study was to dete...

Pesticide mixtures are common in streams with agricultural or urban influence in the watershed. The Pesticide Toxicity Index (PTI) is a screening tool to assess potential aquatic toxicity of complex pesticide mixtures by combining measures of pesticide exposure and acute toxicity in an additive toxic-unit model. The PTI is determined separately for fish, cladocerans, and benthic invertebrates. ...