The Effects of Copper on the Respiration of Oyster Crassotrea gigas (Thunberg)

Abstract

Continuous recording of respiration showed that the metabolic rate of oyster, Crassotrea gigas (Thunberg), was affected when the concentration of copper was higher than 25 ppb in sea water. The. animal's respeiration was more sensitive to the copper ion at 30°C than at 25°C. In accumulation tests, significant amounts of copper were accumulated in the liver at a concentration of 30 ppb in two weeks, while only slight accumulations were found at 28 and 25 ppb. However, the effects of copper on respiration were observed at the copper concentration of 25 ppb when respiration was recorded continuously. The results indicate that continuous recording of respiratory rate is more sensitive than conventional methods for accumulation to study the effects of copper on oyster. © 1994, The Japanese Society of Fisheries Science. All rights reserved.