Background: Land and water pollution by heavy metals is a universal issue. Although the pollution affects all countries, but its range and severity vary hugely. The pollution of the marine environment by heavy metals is a worldwide problem. Marine sediments can be sensitive indicators for monitoring contaminants in aquatic environments. Methods: The concentration of 10 elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Al, Fe, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Zn) was determined in the sediments of four shoreline stations including Imam Hassan port, Ameri port, Bushehr port, and Nayband Bay at the west Persian Gulf from March to December 2017. The elements were measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16. Results: The contamination of the sediments was assessed based on the geoaccumulation index (Igeo) and enrichment factor (EF). Spearman correlation matrix was calculated between all the trace metals and major elements as well as corresponding sampling regions. Statistically significant inter-elemental correlations (e.g., Cr-Fe, Cr-Al, Cr-Ni, Cr-Zn, and Cr-Cu) were found between some metals. High EF levels for Fe, Al, and Pb suggest that metals in the sediments of the northern Persian Gulf could have originated from anthropogenic sources. Conclusion: The contamination pattern of sediments is affected by factors such as sedimentation patterns, physical and chemical properties of the sediments. For example, sediments with fine-grained and high surface area-to-volume ratio can act as good absorbents for many pollutants.

Background: There is little information about the trace elements (TEs) concentrations in the muscle tissue of Caspian kutum (Rutilus kutum) in the South Caspian Sea. Methods: A total of 51 R. kutum specimens were caught at five fishing stations (Gorgan, Sari, Kiashahr, Anzali, and Astara) in the South Caspian Sea from September 2018 to January 2019. The inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) was employed to measure the TEs concentrations in the fish muscles. Results: The maximum concentrations of Al (7.2 ppm), Pb (0.07 ppm), and Ni (0.02) were reported in Astara, and the highest concentrations of As (0.2 ppm), Cu (0.49 ppm), Cr (0.12 ppm), and Zn (1.56 ppm) were reported in Sari and Gorgan. The TEs concentrations measured in the fish muscles (except Mg, Zn, As, Al, Na, and S) had no significant differences among the sampling areas. The TEs concentrations were higher in the eastern areas (Sari and Gorgan) than in the western areas (Astara, Anzali, and Kiashahr) excluding As and Al. The concentrations of Pb, Zn, Mn, Cu, Sn, Sb, Al, Cr, and Cd in muscles of R. kutum were found to be significantly lower (P<0.05) than the maximum permitted levels according to the WHO/FAO standards, while As concentrations were comparable to these standards. Conclusion: The TEs concentrations in different fishing stations of Kiashahr, Anzali, and Astara, located in the southwestern areas were respectively compared with those obtained from Sari and Gorgan, located in the middle and southeastern shore of the Caspian Sea. According to the results, the TEs concentrations obtained from the fish muscles cannot pose a threat to human health.

The aim of this study was to record the length-weight relationship parameters and condition factors for some commercially important fish of Bushehr coastal waters of Persian Gulf. The length-weight relationships were calculated for five species caught during fishing surveys using different types of fishing gears (trawls, pots and gill net with different mesh size) during April 2008 to December 2010. The b value ranged between 2.733 for Argyrops spinifer and 3.03 for Epinephelus coioides. The coefficient of determination (r 2 ) was very significant for all the species. Relative weight had significant differences (Kruskal-Wallis test, P<0.001) with best performance by E. coioides. This results show that this range size of specimens in these populations apparently do not reach and surpass 100% of mean weight. In this study, length-weight relationships and condition factors are reported for the first time for A. spinifer, Pomadasys kaakan and Lutjanus malabaricus from the Persian Gulf and for Lethrinus nebulosus and Lutjanus malabaricus ruber which has not been previously recorded in the Iranian waters.

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Summary The length–weight relationships (LWRs) for six little‐known fish species collected in the northern Persian Gulf (south of Iran) are presented, namely, Plicofollis dussumieri, Pseudotriacanthus strigilifer, Cynoglossus bilineatus, Cynoglossus arel, Solea elongata, and Pseudorhombus elevates.

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