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Abstract :
[en] The seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile is widely used since the mid-70th to biomonitor trace elements (TEs). However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding to pollutant kinetics in that species. Posidonia oceanica were in situ contaminated by a mix of 15 TEs (Al, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Ag, Cd, Pb and Bi) at experimental levels equivalent to 10 (moderate) and 100 (acute) times seawater average concentrations. TEs concentrations were measured by ICP-MS in P. oceanica leaves and rhizomes sampled at regular time intervals, in epiphytes, in water and in sediment.
Posidonia oceanica immediately accumulated pollutants from the beginning of experiments; once contaminations ended, TE concentrations came back to their original levels within two weeks, or at least showed a clear decrease. Leaves exhibited different uptake kinetics for many elements (e.g. Cr, Cu, Ag, Bi etc.): the younger growing leaves forming new tissues incorporated chemicals more rapidly than the older senescent leaves. Rhizomes did not show any clear trend, except for Cu, Zn and Bi. Results demonstrate that P. oceanica is a very sensitive sentinel to immediately delineate punctual pollutions similar to what might be measured in contaminated Mediterranean waters. The good response of P. oceanica leaves to pollutant short-term expositions suggests their routine use in regularly scheduled monitoring programs. Nevertheless, to by-pass P. oceanica leaves deciduous character and their capability to detoxify rapidly, long term accumulation recordings would also necessitate belowground tissues analyses.
