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Effects of nickel and temperature on the ground beetle Pterostichus oblongopunctatus (Coleoptera: Carabidae)

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Abstract

In natural ecosystems it is not unusual for an organism to be exposed both to chemical and physical stressful factors at the same time. Herein we present results of the study on nickel toxicity to the carabid beetle, Pterostichus oblongopunctatus, and effect of Ni and temperature on the beetles respiration rates. In the first part of the study (Experiment I) we measured the survival, respiration rates and internal Ni concentrations in animals exposed for 245 d at constant temperature (20 °C) to food contaminated with Ni at nominal concentrations 0; 600; 1,200; 2,400; 4,800; and 9,600 mg kg−1 dry weigh (dw). The LC50 was estimated at 8,351 mg Ni kg−1, with no effect on fertility. We found a significant positive correlation between Ni concentration in food and internal body concentration of Ni, and a negative correlation between Ni exposure and the respiration rate. Based on these results, the concentration of 2,400 mg kg−1 (LOEC for the respiration rate) was selected for the second part of the study (Experiment II) in which field-collected males of P. oblongopunctatus were exposed to Ni-contaminated food for 64 d and then to uncontaminated food for the next 64 d at three temperatures: 10, 15 and 20°C. In this part of the study we found that the temperature under which the beetles were kept affected their respiration rates, and that effect of Ni on the respiration was significant only in animals originating from 20°C. The results from both experiments indicate that negative effects of nickel appear only after relatively long exposure.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Ms. Renata Śliwińska for her help in the field and laboratory. We also would like to thank the Olkusz Forest Service for a kind cooperation. The study was supported by the EU-Integrated project NoMiracle (Novel Methods for Integrated Risk assessment of Cumulative Stressors in Europe; http://www.nomiracle.jrc.it; contract No. 003956 under the EU-theme “Global Change and Ecosystems” topic “Development of risk assessment methodologies”, coordinated by Dr. Hans Løkke at NERI, DK-8600 Silkeborg, Denmark), the Polish Ministry of Science and Informatization (contract No. 158/E-338/6. PR UE/DIE 279/2005–2008), and the Jagiellonian University (DS-758).

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  1. Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, Krakow, 30-387, Poland

    Agnieszka J. Bednarska & Ryszard Laskowski

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  1. Agnieszka J. Bednarska
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  2. Ryszard Laskowski
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Correspondence to Agnieszka J. Bednarska.

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Bednarska, A.J., Laskowski, R. Effects of nickel and temperature on the ground beetle Pterostichus oblongopunctatus (Coleoptera: Carabidae). Ecotoxicology 17, 189–198 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-007-0183-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-007-0183-8

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