Influence of Current Velocity on Cadmium Accumulation by an Aquatic Moss and the Consequences for Its Use as a Biomonitor

• Published in: Environmental science & technology 2001-03, Vol.35 (5), p.923-927
• Main Authors: Croisetière, Louis, Hare, Landis, Tessier, André
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis methods; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Applied sciences; Biological and medical sciences; Biological Availability; Bryophyta; Bryopsida - chemistry; Cadmium - pharmacokinetics; Contamination; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Effects of pollution and side effects of pesticides on plants and fungi; Environmental Monitoring; Exact sciences and technology; Fontinalis dalecarlica; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Metals; Mosses; Natural water pollution; Pollution; Velocity; Water Movements; Water Pollutants, Chemical - pharmacokinetics; Water treatment and pollution
• ISSN: 0013-936X; 1520-5851
• DOI: 10.1021/es001435p

Aquatic mosses are widely used as biomonitors of contaminant concentrations in running waters. The results of several previous studies suggest that metal concentrations in mosses are influenced by current velocity and that this variable should be taken into account when mosses are used as metal biomonitors. However, in these studies, the purported influence of water velocity was confounded by other uncontrolled variables. We conducted our study to test the influence of current velocity on Cd accumulation by the riverine moss Fontinalis dalecarlica. We found no difference in Cd accumulation over 2 weeks by moss exposed in the laboratory to a constant Cd concentration over a wide range of current velocities (0.01−0.70 m s-1) that occur in the field. Similarly, the results of a field experiment, in which we exposed F. dalecarlica in a Cd-contaminated creek to four current velocities (0.05−0.50 m s-1), confirmed that in nature Cd accumulation by this moss is not influenced by current velocity. We show that a bioaccumulation model that ignores current velocity describes Cd accumulation by F. dalecarlica very well. Our results suggest that current velocity does not have to be considered when using aquatic mosses as metal biomonitors.