New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts
Relative sensitivities of common freshwater fish and invertebrates to
acute hypoxia
Michael J. Landman1,2
Michael R. van den Heuvel1
Nicholas Ling2
1Scion Research
Te Papa Tipu Innovation Park
49 Sala Street
Private Bag 3020
Rotorua, New Zealand
2Department of Biological Sciences
The University of Waikato
Private Bag 3105
Hamilton, New Zealan
Abstract The acute lethality of low dissolved oxygen
(DO) was examined in laboratory studies using several New Zealand freshwater
fish and two invertebrates at 15°C. The 48-h LC50 value was
used as the endpoint for acute DO sensitivity as, owing to rapid mortality,
this was found to best approximate the threshold lethal concentration. Median
lethal time to death did not provide a reliable endpoint for comparing sensitivities.
Fish LC50 values varied from 0.54 to 2.65 mg litre–1,
with inanga whitebait (Galaxias maculatus; 2.65 ± 0.19 mg litre–1,
mean ± SEM) being the most sensitive species tested. Common smelt
(Retropinna retropinna; 1.83 ± 0.08 mg litre–1)
and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss; 1.61 ± 0.06 mg litre–1)
were similar in their sensitivities, whereas common bully (Gobiomorphus
cotidianus; 0.91 ± 0.06 mg litre–1) and shortfin eel
elvers (Anguilla australis; 0.54 ± 0.03 mg litre–1)
were the most tolerant fish. The shrimp (Paratya curvirostris; 0.82
± 0.09 mg litre–1) and freshwater crayfish (Koura, Paranephrops
planifrons; 0.77 ± 0.06 mg litre–1) were also tolerant
to low DO. A subset of experiments to determine the relative sensitivities
of larval and juvenile trout and bully indicated no significant differences
between these life stages.
Keywords dissolved oxygen; fish; freshwater; hypoxia;
Anguilla australis; Gobiomorphus cotidianus; Retropinna
retropinna;Paratya curvirostris; Paranephrops planifrons;Oncorhynchus
mykiss; Galaxias maculatus
M05001; Online publication date 15 August 2005 Received 7 January 2005;
accepted 3 May 2005
New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2005, Vol. 39:
1061–1067
0028-8330/05/3905-1061 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2005
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