Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in sediments and muscle tissue of Mudskipper (Boleophthalmus dussumieri) in Khuzestan coast, the Persian Gulf

The growing need for marine food resources and the entry of various pollutants, including heavy metals, into coasts and marines are major challenges humanbeings face with. For this purpose, in this study, the concentration of heavy metals in the muscle tissue of Mudskipper and sediments of Khuzestan coast was studied. The results showed that there was a significant difference between the concentrations of cadmium, zinc, and iron accumulated in the muscle tissue of Mudskipper between different stations (P <0.05). But, there is no significant correlation between the concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Zn, Ni, and Fe in the sediments of different stations and their concentrations in the muscle tissue of Mudskipper (P> 0.05). The average concentration of As, Ni, and Cd in muscle tissue were higher than the WHO global standard (2004, Table 1). Also, the average concentration of Zn and Fe in fish muscle tissue was lower than the standard. Comparison of metal concentrations with the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) (2004, Table 2) showed that the concentration of Ni in the sediments of different stations is in intense pollution (more than 40 ppm). Based on other studies on this species, Mudskipper can be considered as an indicator of contamination, and the results of this study also show the effect of contaminated areas on the accumulation of heavy metals in muscle tissue. Therefore, it is better to undertake more studies to prevent the impact of pollutants, especially heavy metals on genetic erosion and the removal of this species from nature.