engleski

Imposex incidence in Hexaplex trunculus from the Kaštela bay

Imposex, a pseudo-hermaphroditic condition characterized by the imposition of male genitalia on female prosobranch gastropods, is used as a bioindicator of pollution by tributyltin (TBT) based antifoulants. The incidence and the intensity of imposex, evaluated from the vas deferens sequence index (VDSI) and the female penis length (FPL), were investigated in Hexaplex trunculus populations from six locations in Kaštela Bay: Bene (N=20), Marina Kaštela (N=19) and Kaštel Stari (N=18) in November and December, 2004 followed by Lora (N=14), Lučica (N=20) and Resnik (N=20) in April, 2006. Analysis of 111 females (height=67.5± 7.4 mm) revealed the absolute prevalence of the imposex in all the investigated locations. Furthermore, most of the females were affected at the advanced imposex stages (VDSI=4.5± 0.7, range=2-5). Female penis homologues were found to be well developed (max=20 mm) with mean values ranging from 6.7-12.6 mm. Significant differences were detected regarding both the VDSI (H=30.82, p<0.001) and the FPL (F=5.49, p<0.001) between the locations. The results presented in the study confirm the widespread incidence of imposex and can provide reference values for future monitoring programs.

imposex ; Hexaplex trunculus ; Kaštela bay ; Adriatic

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