W7 AM Acclimation / Adaptation of Animals to Metals: Resistance, Tolerance, and Cost
Wednesday, 16 November 2005: 8:00 AM - 11:40 AM in 327-329

(COU-1117-642195) Metabolic cost of chronic metal exposure in wild yellow perch.

Couture, P.¹, Pyle, G.², ¹ Institut National de la recherche scientifique, centre Eau, Terre et Environnement, Québec, QC, Canada² Nipissing University, North Bay, ON, Canada

ABSTRACT- The overall objective of this investigation was to examine the extent of metabolic impairment and adaptation in wild yellow perch historically exposed to elevated aqueous and dietary metal contamination. Sampling was carried out in metal gradients around Sudbury and Rouyn-Noranda, two major Northeastern Canadian copper and nickel mining and smelting areas. Yellow perch is a freshwater species that is widely distributed across North America. It is also metal tolerant and is the only abundant fish species remaining in the most contaminated lakes studied. Fish from the two regions demonstrated pronounced differences in tissue metal accumulation patterns in response to environmental contamination. Increasing metal contamination was associated with consistent increases of liver and muscle aerobic capacities in Rouyn-Noranda, but not Sudbury yellow perch. In contrast, previous research had clearly demonstrated that at the whole organism level, the aerobic capacity of metal-contaminated yellow perch from Sudbury was impaired, as measured by aerobic swim performance and respiration rates. Overall, our results indicate that chronic metal exposure and adaptation in wild yellow perch lead to metabolic costs but that metal acclimation strategies vary regionally, likely at least partly due to genetic differences induced by varying selective pressures. We also hypothesize that oxidative stress at the mitochondrial level plays a key role in chronic metal toxicity and metabolic costs for wild fish.

Key words: Wild yellow perch, metabolic capacities, metals, chronic exposure