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Metal (Fe, Zn, Cd, Cu, Co, Ni, Al, Mn, Pb and Cr) levels were investigated in the muscle tissue of Monodonta turbinata from seven different stations in Iskenderun Bay. Accumulations of all elements were effected from seasonal changes in all stations. The highest levels of Zn (101.42 µg/g), Cd (9.01 µg/g), Cu (334.47 µg/g) and Pb (90.8 µg/g) were found in the station Qevlik. However, the highest levels of Fe (3176.85 µg/g), Co (12.76 µg/g), Ni (26.93 µg/g), Al (409.30 µg/g), Mn (49.40 µg/g) and Cr (45.06 µg/g) were observed in the station Kalekóy. Mean concentrations except Zn that was lower in the station DOrtyol were generally lower in the station Yumurtalik. Fe showed the highest levels in all stations compared to the rest of the elements. The high concentration of heavy metals was observed during spring. The data indicate that M. turbinata is very efficient heavy metal accumulator and, therefore, may be used successfully to monitor heavy metal presence in Iskenderun Bay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A regression model is proposed for studying the relationship between trace metals concentrations and weights of individuals of Monodonta turbinata (Born), a gastropod mollusc used as a trace metal biomonitor of marine coastal areas. The model herein presented was developed including sites as reference factors and showed very good correlations. The prevision model of contamination gave good results for this kind of pollutants, and it can be used as a tool for monitoring programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxygen isotopes in shell carbonate samples from the marine rocky-shore intertidal gastropod Monodonta turbinata (Born) are investigated in both modern analogue specimens and in archaeological specimens from the Grotta dell’Uzzo (Sicily). Variations in shell edge values of δ 18 O in living specimens collected monthly over two years are closely correlated with monthly seawater temperatures measured at the time of collection, showing that the species can be used for palaeoseasonality studies. Analyses of shell edge δ 18 O values in archaeological specimens, from Mesolithic through to early Neolithic phases at the Grotta dell’Uzzo, enabled the inference of various seasons of collection of shellfish and how such seasonality varies between the different phases of occupation. Interesting similarities and differences exist between the seasons of marine shellfish exploitation and the seasons inferred from the vertebrate zooarchaeological assemblages. A major inference drawn from the analyses and discussion is that the exploitation of all marine resources (fish and shellfish) increased in the later Mesolithic and early Neolithic periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine organisms were tested as possible biomonitors of heavy metal contamination in Ustica (island of the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea). The concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn were measured in the phanerogam Posidonia oceanica L. Delile, the two brown algae Padinapavonica (L.) Thivy and Cystoseira sp., and the two gastropod molluscs Monodonta turbinata Born and Patella caerulea L. collected at five coastal stations on the island of Ustica. The biomonitors examined showed a high ability to accumulate metals, with concentration factors higher than with respect to the concentration (soluble fraction) in marine waters. The data from this study were also compared with those previously obtained from uncontaminated sites in the Sicilian sea (Favignana island, Italy) and those obtained from the area of the Gulf of Gaeta (Tyrrhenian Sea, central Italy). Results clearly show the diversity between these three marine ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work underlines the importance of the statistical procedures necessary for the significant assessment of analytical data of heavy metals derived from marine organisms (biomonitors) collected at five stations in Ustica at the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea. The statistical method described indicates that, where the differences among the averages of Pb, Cu and Zn concentrations in the molluscs of the sites analysed tested with ANOVA are significant, it is necessary to conduct multiple comparison tests in order to determine which average is significantly different from the other. Using the method described, it is possible to indicate which site or sites is/are more contaminated in comparison with the other sites. This way it is possible to make a preliminary evaluation of the basal levels of trace metals present in the reference marine ecosystem under study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]