Environmental pollutants on fish: integrating behavioral and physiological indicators of toxicity

• Grant number: 13/02430-2
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: December 01, 2013
• End date: November 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Animal Behavior
• Principal Investigator: Percilia Cardoso Giaquinto
• Grantee: Percilia Cardoso Giaquinto
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Environmental pollutants such as metals and pesticides are causing serious risk to aquatic organisms. The problem of this project began with the high fish mortality in the lake of Hydroelectric Jupiá / SP, which were detected high levels of copper and glyphosate, two environmental pollutants that cause deleterious effects on biota. The objective of this work is to study the effects of these contaminants on physiological, behavioral and toxicological studies in 3 species of fish of this reservoir and in the Paraná Basin as a whole: pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus), curimbatá (Prochilodus lineapus) and dourado (Salminus maxillosus). The impact of such contaminants will be evaluated in the physiology of food intake (intake, feed conversion and growth), eating behaviors and social recognition (recognize, avoid and escape from predators). Because behavior links physiological function with ecological processes, behavioral indicators of toxicity appear ideal for assessing the effects of aquatic pollutants on fish populations. Also, evaluations of physiological / morphological parameters such as intestinal enzyme activity, plasma cortisol levels, conditions of the olfactory epithelium and gill. Such effects will be evaluated under different concentrations of copper and glyphosate, as well as the possibility (and level) of recovery of these species after cessation of contaminants treatments. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

GIAQUINTO, PERCILIA CARDOSO; DE SA, MARINA BORGES; SUGIHARA, VANESSA SEIKO; GONCALVES, BRUNO BASTOS; DELICIO, HELTON CARLOS; BARKI, ASSAF. Effects of Glyphosate-Based Herbicide Sub-Lethal Concentrations on Fish Feeding Behavior. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, v. 98, n. 4, p. 460-464, APR 2017. (13/02430-2)