Abstract:
This study aims to contribute to the assessment of the marine pollution situation in the coast of Wilaya of Mostaganem with heavy metals based on three scarce elements: copper, cadmium and lead using two types of animal and plant biomarkers, the first type of great fish "Mullus barbatus" and the second type of marine algae "Ulva lactuca" collected in two stages from Salamander Bay in Mostaganem : the first stage on25/05/2022 and the second stage on 18/05/2022
These two species reflect the quality of their habitats as a common species in the Algerian coastal waters and preferred by a large percentage of fish-feeding organisms, hence the importance of determining their breeding season and sex ratio. The monthly sampling period extends about three months: March, April, and May 2022, and due to their importance, we focused on the muscle and glands specifically (liver and gonads), and the mineral concentrates were determined after metallization with atomic absorption spectroscopy according to two criteria: sex and month. This study shows that the Mullus barbatus fish contains the three studied metals, copper occupies the highest percentage, followed by lead and finally cadmium in fairly significant concentrations. Glands are considered preferential organs due to their key role in various metabolic processes.
Monthly monitoring of the somatic gonadal index RGS and average body weight RHS reveals that the breeding season of fish falls on the beginning of April, and the overall sex ratio is in favor of female fish.
With regard to Ulva lactuca, very high levels for the two metals represent lead and copper, and another very low for cadmium. These equalizations are different relative to the duration of the sample and the life cycle of the variety.
