Morphological Deformities as Biomarkers in Fish from Contaminated Rivers in Taiwan

Peter Lin Sun, William E. Hawkins, Robin M. Overstreet and Nancy J. Brown-Peterson
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Peter Lin Sun: Department of Aquaculture, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, 1, Shuefu Road, Neipu, Pingtung 912, Taiwan
William E. Hawkins: Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, The University of Southern Mississippi, P.O. Box 7000, Ocean Springs, MS 39566, USA
Robin M. Overstreet: Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, The University of Southern Mississippi, P.O. Box 7000, Ocean Springs, MS 39566, USA
Nancy J. Brown-Peterson: Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, The University of Southern Mississippi, P.O. Box 7000, Ocean Springs, MS 39566, USA

IJERPH, 2009, vol. 6, issue 8, 1-25

Abstract: Tilapia ( Oreochromis spp.) were collected seasonally from four contaminated rivers in southwestern Taiwan for studies of morphological deformities that could be used as biomarkers of contamination. Morphological deformities found in tilapia were separated into 15 categories. Overall, the prevalence of deformities such as split fins, lower lip extension and gill deformities were significantly related to various water quality parameters, including low DO and high ammonium, lead and zinc concentrations. The persistence of tilapia in polluted waters and the development of a suite of morphological deformities suggest that tilapia can be used as sentinels of non-point source pollution in rivers.

Keywords: tilapia; morphological deformity; biomarker; indicator; river pollution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
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