The Mediterranean blue mussel as an environmental indicator of metal pollution in the coastal area of Eastern Adriatic

This paper presents the results of the second year of monitoring of heavy metal contamination in the Croatian coastal area using the Mediterranean blue mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) as indicator species. The levels of essential (Cu, Zn) and non-essential (Cd, Pb, Cr) metals were determined in the whole soft tissue of mussels collected from 28 locations along the Eastern Adriatic coast. Examination of the spatial pattern of contaminants revealed three types of metal distribution. Zinc (58-170 mg kg(-1) dry wt.) was uniformly distributed across all the sites, while concentrations of Cd (0.17-1.57 mg kg(-1) dry wt.) and Cr (0.92-2.61 mg kg(-1) dry wt.) were elevated in certain regions. However, these values were not significantly different from those found at the stations with no known point sources of contamination. Elevated concentrations of lead and copper were recorded in the areas with high input of industrial, harbor and urban wastes. Although a wide range of lead and copper concentrations was observed, most of the values were lower than 1.5 mg kg(-1) dry m. and 14 mg kg(-1) dry wt., respectively.