Thallium movement in a simple aquatic ecosystem

Very little is known about the behavior of thallium in an aquatic system. Because of its toxicity and pollution potential, a greater understanding of thallium transport pathways in aquatic systems is needed. This study examined the transport of thallium among four basic aquatic components: water, sand, vegetation, and fish. Concentrations of thallium decreased slowly in the water and increased tenfold in the vegetation and fish. Definite transport of thallium occurred among water, fish, and vegetation, but no significant transport was seen between the sand and the other ecosystem components. Thallium concentration in the sand remained essentially constant throughout the experiments