Toxicity testing invertebrates

Johnson, W.W. and M.T. Finley. 1980. Handbook of Acute Toxicity of Chemicals to Fish and Aquatic Invertebrates. Summaries of Toxicity Tests Conducted at Columbia National Fisheries Research Laboratory, 1965-78. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. Resour. Publ. 137. 98 pp. 

Borthwick, P.W. and G.E. Walsh. 1981. Initial Toxicological Assessment of Ambush, Bolero, Bux, Dursban, Fentrifanil, Larvin, and Pydrin Static Acute Toxicity Tests with Selected Estuarine Algae, Invertebrates, and Fish. U.S. Environ. Protection Agen. Rep. 600/4-81-076. 20 pp. 

Phipps, G.L. and G.W. Holcombe. 1985. A method for aquatic multiple species toxicant testing acute toxicity of 10 chemicals to 5 vertebrates and 2 invertebrates. Environ. Pollut. 38A 1,41-157. 

The biological approach (whole effluent) to toxics control for the protection of aquatic life involves the use of acute and chronic toxicity tests to measure the toxicity of wastewaters. Whole effluent tests (WET) employ the use of standardized, surrogate freshwater or marine (depending on the mixture of effluent and receiving water) plants (algae), invertebrates, and vertebrates. 

Persoone, G. Janssen, C.R. Freshwater invertebrate toxicity tests. In Handbook of Ecotoxicology Calow, P., Ed. Blackwell Scientific Publications, 1994 Vol. 1, Chap. 4, 51-65. 

Acute toxicity tests with plants, invertebrates and vertebrates... 

Suspended NC in concns as high ias lOOOmg/G showed no effect on four species of fish and four invertebrates in various acute toxicity tests... 

Whether TT (toxicity testing with single species tests at the same biotic level) or TBAs are performed, some test organisms have been more frequently used than others (Tab. 5). Invertebrates have been the most commonly employed, as had been pointed out in an earlier literature survey conducted between 1979 and 1987 (Maltby... 

Other standardized/validated test methods reported in the literature include acute/chronic tests performed with algae (e.g, OECD, 2002a ISO, 2003), fish cells (Gagne and Blaise, 2001), invertebrates (Borgmann and Munawar, 1989 Trottier et al., 1997 Pereira et ah, 2000 OECD, 2001 a,b), Lemnaceae (OECD, 2002b), and with toxicity tests conducted at different trophic levels (Nebeker et ah, 1984 U.S. EPA, 2002a,b). 

Ankley, G. T., Benoit, D. A., Balogh, J. C., Reynoldson, T. B., Day, K. E. and Hoke, R. A. (1994) Evaluation of potential confounding factors in sediment toxicity tests with three freshwater benthic invertebrates, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 13 (4), 627-635. 

Day, K.E., Kirby, R.S. and Reynoldson, T. B. (1995b) The effect of manipulations of freshwater sediments on responses of benthic invertebrates in whole-sediment toxicity tests, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 14 (8), 1333-1343. 

Kosmala, A., Charvet, S., Roger, M.-C. and Faessel, B. (1999) Impact assessment of a wastewater treatment plant effluent using instream invertebrates and the Ceriodaphnia dubia chronic toxicity test, Water Research 33 (1), 266-278. 

Both methods have been shown to be effective in illustrating the relationships between laboratory sublethal toxicity tests (using fish, invertebrates, and algae) and receiving environment measurements of fish and benthic invertebrates. The applications, strengths, and weaknesses of both the ZPE and LTF methods are discussed and compared. 

Rating the relationship between ZPE andfield measurements The relationship between sublethal toxicity tests and field measurements can be rated on the basis of zones of potential effect (Environment Canada, 1999). The following points describe the criteria used for rating the relationship between zones of potential effect for each sublethal test (lowest IC25) and potential effluent-related effects on fish or the benthic invertebrate community (Moody, 1992). 

Using the ZPE scheme, the study of effluent discharge situations at 16 Ontario pulp and paper mills demonstrated a majority of strong or moderately strong relationships between sublethal toxicity tests and ecosystem indicators (fish populations and benthic invertebrate communities). The locations of effects in benthic organisms corresponded in 100% of cases with zones predicted by the Ceriodaphnia test and in 81% of cases with predictions from the Selenastrum test. The fathead minnow test did not perform as well, predicting effects on fish in only 53% of cases (Moody, 2000). 

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