Effect of Temperature on the Toxicity of Zinc, Copper and Lead to the Feshwater Amphipod Gammarus pulex pulex (L.,1758)

Abstract

This study showed the effect of temperature on copper, zinc and lead toxicity to the freshwater amphipod Gammarus pulex pulex. 96-h LC 50 values were estimated for copper, zinc and lead in this species using the static bioassay method. Increase in the concentration of copper, zinc and lead decreased the survival of the animals. The LC 50 values of Cu, Zn and Pb for Gammarus pulex pulexranged from 0.028 to 0.080, 5.2 to 12.1 and 11.2 to 23.2 mg/l, respectively. The results indicated that Cu was more toxic to the species, followed by Zn and Pb. The results were compared with those from other studies and discussed.