Statistical Significance of BioMonitoring of Marine Algae for Trace Metal Levels in a Coral Environment

Abstract

Samples of macro algae collected at random distances from the coral and near shore environment of Lakshadweep archipelago were analyzed for their trace metal content (Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Co, Cr, Cd, Pb, and Ni). All the species showed an affinity towards essential elements, and the concentration of Fe seemed to be the highest in all the species, irrespective of their classification. The trace metal content reported in this study was much lower than the limit prescribed by Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in seafood for human consumption. None of the species of algae had the tendency to bioconcentrate Pb in their system as the detection level was below 0.1 mg/kg. The metal selectivity index calculated in statistical analysis emphasized the ability of algae to accumulate a particular metal from among the metals studied. To show the similarity between species and metal uptake, a group linkage clustering technique was used and the results were depicted using dendrogram. The marked similarities in the levels of trace metals in algal species have supported the view that all samples originated from a common coastal habitat. This exemplifies the applicability of bio-monitoring studies of marine algae to forensic investigations.

Keywords:

• macro algae
• coral reef
• metal selectivity index
• species selectivity index
• Trellis diagram

Acknowledgements

We thank Cochin University of Science and Technology for use of facilities. AG thanks DST (India) for financial assistance.