Influence of low levels of water salinity on toxicity of nitrite to anuran larvae

Abstract

Reactive nitrogen compounds such as nitrite (NO2-) are highly toxic to aquatic animals and are partly responsible for the global decline of amphibians. On some fish and Caudata amphibian species low levels of sodium chloride significantly reduce the toxicity of nitrite. However, the nitrite-salinity interaction has not been properly studied in anuran amphibians. To verify if chloride (Cl-) attenuates NO2- toxicity, eggs and larvae of three anuran species were subjected to a series of NO2- solutions combined with three salt concentrations (0, 0.4 and 2 or 0, 0.052 and 0.2gL-1NaCl). One of the species tested originated from two different populations inhabiting highly contrasted nutrient richness environments: lowland Doñana Natural Park and Sierra de Gredos Mountain. In general, the presence of Cl- increased survival and growth of lowland Pelophylax perezi and activity of mountain P. perezi larvae exposed to NO2-, thus attenuating the toxicity of NO2- to developing amphibians. Mountain amphibian populations appeared to be much more sensitive to the concentrations of NO2- and Cl- used in this experiment than coastal conspecifics, suggesting possible adaptation of populations to local conditions. Nitrogen pollution in coastal wetlands poses a serious threat to aquatic organisms, causing direct toxicity or indirect effects via ecosystem eutrophication. The presence of low to medium levels of salinity that would be common in coastal wetlands may attenuate the direct effects of increasing concentrations of nitrogenous compounds in water bodies. Furthermore, treating cultures of endangered anurans with small amounts of NaCl may provide an additional protective measure.