Question

Mangroves as bioindicators of heavy metal pollution

Answer 1

Mangroves have been observed to possess a tolerance to high levels of heavy metals, yet accumulated metals may induce subcellular biochemical changes, which can impact on processes at the organism level. Six month-old seedlings of the grey mangrove, Avicennia marina (Forsk.) Vierh, were exposed to a range of Cu (0–800 μg/g), Pb (0–800 μg/g) and Zn (0–1000 μg/g) concentrations in sediments under laboratory conditions, to determine leaf tissue metal accumulation patterns, effects on photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll).