Relationship between Concentrations of Copper and Zinc in Water, Sediment, Benthic Invertebrates, and Tissues of White Sucker (Catostomus commersoni) at Metal-Contaminated Sites

The relationship of concentrations of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) tissues to concentrations of those metals in water, sediment, and benthic invertebrates (food) were investigated in a field study. Fish were collected from six northern Ontario lakes contaminated with mixed-metal mining wastes. The concentrations of Cu in invertebrates were correlated with water but not with sediment Cu concentrations. Conversely, Zn concentrations in invertebrates were correlated with sediment but not with water Zn concentrations. There were differences among fish from different lakes in the concentrations of Cu and Zn in liver, kidney, gill, and bone (Zn only). There were no significant correlations between tissue metal and invertebrate metal concentrations. This study suggests that liver and kidney are better indicators of chronic Cu and Zn exposure than muscle. Elevated Zn concentrations were reflected in bone tissue. For both metals, the water concentration was a better predictor of fish tissue contamination than the concentrations in either sediment or invertebrates.