Distribution of heavy metals in (Fe, Hg, Ni and Pb) sediment and blue crab, Portunus pelagicus from four estuaries, Persian Gulf

Abstract

Present study consist levels of heavy metals (Fe, Hg, Ni and Pb) in sediments and tissues of blue swimming crab, Portunus pelagicus from the Persian Gulf coasts, south Iran. The concentration of heavy metals in sediments at all sampling stations occurs in descending order of Fe > Ni > Hg > Pb. This study assessed the relationship between metals trace in hepatopancreasn tissue, muscle and exoskeleton with carapace width and weight. Significant increase in the metals levels in hepatopancreasn tissue (p<0.05) with an increase in carapace width and weight for this species. Hepatopancreasn accumulate higher levels of the metals in comparison to muscle and exoskeleton. Variation in heavy metals levels among the species is likely to have resulted from metal bioavailability, changes in tissue composition, organism size, age and locations.