Acute toxicity of nickel to fresh water prawns

Abstract

In the present study, the LC50 of nickel and its impact on the behaviour of 2 species of freshwater prawns, Macrobrachium lamarrei (H. Milne Edwards) and Macrobrachium dayanum (Henderson) was evaluated. An inverse relationship between LC50 values and exposure duration was obtained. Nickel was found to be 6.33 times more toxic to M. lamarrei than to M. dayanum. Nickel exposure increased aggression and loss of balance in both species of prawns in a concentration-dependent manner with both parameters being higher in M. dayanum (416.47 mg/L) than in M. lamarrei (65.77 mg/L). All behavioural parameters decreased with increase in exposure duration in both prawn species, with the exception of grasping behaviour and the number of individuals showing loss of balance. © TÜBİTAK.