Rhm. Eertman et al., SURVIVAL IN AIR OF THE BLUE MUSSEL MYTILUS-EDULIS-L AS A SENSITIVE RESPONSE TO POLLUTION-INDUCED ENVIRONMENTAL-STRESS, Journal of experimental marine biology and ecology, 170(2), 1993, pp. 179-195
Mussels, Mytilus edulis, were exposed for periods of 6 weeks at variou
s locations in Dutch coastal waters during 1989 and 1990. ''Survival i
n air'' showed to be a sensitive response parameter for indicating pol
lution induced environmental stress in transplanted mussels sampled fr
om eight field sites. Increased tissue contaminant levels, especially
PCBs and PAHs, correlated with a reduced survival time during aerial e
xposure. Three weeks exposure of mussels in the laboratory to 1 mug.l-
1 PCB s affected the aerial survival time negatively. Laboratory exper
iments did not indicate that lowered salinity influences the ''Surviva
l in air'' response after sufficient acclimation (15 days), facilitati
ng the use of this response parameter in both marine and estuarine wat
ers.