Acute toxicity of roundup to the nontarget organism Hyalella curvispina. Laboratory and field study

Abstract

Glyphosate is the most used pesticide in Argentina. Hyalella curvispina is a widely distributed and commonly abundant component of the invertebrate assemblages in shallow waters of southern South America. The aim of this study was to assess the acute toxicity of the increasingly common Roundup Full II®, commercial formulation of the herbicide glyphosate (66.2% active ingredient), to H. curvispina in laboratory and field assessments. The mean estimated 48-h LC₅₀ of Roundup was 9.9 ± 1.7 mg L⁻¹. In a field experiment Roundup was applied to soybean plots. Simulated rain was generated the following day by means of irrigation sprinkler equipment. H. curvispina was exposed to runoff water and soy leaves. No mortality was observed. It is suggested that Roundup crop applications represent a low risk of acute toxicity to H. curvispina adults inhabiting water bodies adjacent to crop fields.

Keywords:

• acute toxicity
• herbicide
• Roundup
• amphipod

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the unknown reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by grants from the National Scientific and Technical Research Council [grant number CONICET-PIP 2011 # 0180], Argentina.