SYMPOSIA PAPER Published: 01 January 1982
STP36713S

Variation in Response to Methylmercury by Killifish ( ) Embryos

Source

Some female killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) from Montauk, N.Y., produce eggs that are much more resistant to the craniofacial, cardiovascular, and skeletal effects of 0.05 ppm methylmercury than eggs of other females. The following relationships were observed in studying 128 batches of eggs from 85 females fertilized by 35 males.

Batches of eggs with a high percentage of noncleaving eggs (NCEs) tended to be most susceptible. Tolerance was also associated with the relation of the date to the lunar spawning cycle and with the number of dorsal fin rays in the females; fish that had ten fin rays produced no unaffected batches, whereas those with eleven or twelve rays produced eggs ranging from very tolerant (unaffected) to very susceptible. A weaker correlation with female weight was seen. Because of the importance of the percentage of NCEs in determining the tolerance of a batch of eggs, the data were reanalyzed after removing all those batches with high rates of (>35 percent) NCEs. This revealed a strong association of tolerance with the stickiness of the eggs in that batches which were very sticky tended to be more resistant. Correlations were also seen with female length and fecundity. No correlations were seen with any measured traits of the males.

Author Information

Weis, J
Rutgers University, Newark, N.J.
Weis, P
College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, N.J.
Heber, M
Rutgers University, Newark, N.J. Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, Solomons, Md
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Developed by Committee: E35
Pages: 109–119
DOI: 10.1520/STP36713S
ISBN-EB: 978-0-8031-4831-4
ISBN-13: 978-0-8031-0796-0