Relationship of phosphorus content in carp otoliths with that in ambient water in Xiaoxi Port of the Taihu Lake, East China

Abstract

It has been of high concern that the phosphorus pollution is getting serious after lake eutrophication in the Taihu Lake, the third largest freshwater lake in China. As a sensitive recorder of the ambient water and fish exposures, fish otolith has been studied as a potential dynamic monitor of water quality by many biologists and mineralogists. In order to work out the correlation of phosphorus enrichment in carp otoliths to the ambient water of the carps, the phosphorus concentration in carp otoliths was measured in situ using laser ablation plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and comparison with the relevant data of the water was conducted. Significant positive correlation was found for phosphorus concentration in carp otoliths to the ambient water in the corresponding time. Therefore, the wild carp otoliths have the potential to act as an environmental indicator of water phosphorus pollution and lake eutrophication.

Late Devonian dimpled phosphatic microspherules associated with conodonts are possible otoliths of short-lived and opportunistic organisms

“…However, as mentioned above, otoliths represent a structure vital to the auditory system, the main composition of otoliths remains unchanged as the animal grows, because they are determined by genes, even modern fish living in eutrophic waters, and some element contents (such as P) of their otoliths are still less than 0.1% (Du et al . ).…”

“…Giles et al (2002) and Huang & Gong (2014) proposed that phosphatic microspherules record enhanced secretion by fishes or conodont animals under conditions of excessive dissolved reactive phosphorus in the upwelling-affected or seasonally anoxic basin. However, as mentioned above, otoliths represent a structure vital to the auditory system, the main composition of otoliths remains unchanged as the animal grows, because they are determined by genes, even modern fish living in eutrophic waters, and some element contents (such as P) of their otoliths are still less than 0.1% (Du et al 2011).…”

Enrichment of Pb, Hg and Cr in cultured carp otolith

“…Date* history of fish and the surrounding environment, the elements deposited in otolith can be considered as chemical indicator. Studies have proved that some elements in otolith can reveal certain characters of water environment (Campana, 1999;Hanson and Zdanowicz, 1999;Quinn et al, 1999;Weber et al, 2002;Wells et al, 2003Gao et al, 2010Li et al, 2011a;Du et al, 2011). There are only few studies on trace elements in otolith, and comparably, more on element such as Ca, Sr, K, Na and Ba than on heavy metal elements.…”

“…In these years, the chosen aquatic organisms are aquatic algae, zooplankton community and zoobenthos. Otolith is a new choice for this biological monitoring method (Thorrold, 1998;Anadon et al, 2002;Bacon et al, 2004;Gao et al, 2010;Li et al, 2011a;Li et al, 2011b;Du et al, 2011). Otolith is a kind of calcium carbonate biomineral that grows in the inner ear of teleost.…”

Mineralogical and geochemical study of carp otoliths from Baiyangdian Lake and Miyun Water Reservoir in China

“…Ranaldi and Gagnon (2010) conducted experiments with pink snapper (Pagrus auratus) and proposed that otolith metal concentrations (Zn, Cd and Pb) may be related to the environmental exposure history of fish to contamination. Otoliths have the potential to record the historic exposure of fish to metal contamination and it is possible to apply otoliths as an indicator of environmental pollution (Saquet et al, 2002;Gagnon, 2008, 2010;Li et al, 2011a, b;Du et al, 2011).…”