The concentration of mercury in edible oysters Saccostrea cucullata within Indian Sundarbans estuarine region

We analyzed mercury (Hg) concentrations in ambient water and muscle tissue of dominant edible oyster Saccostrea cucullata in 3 stations located in the western sector of Indian Sundarbans estuarine region for 3 seasons namely- premonsoon, monsoon and postmonsoon during 2017. Analyses were done by standard procedures using Inductively Coupled Plasma- Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS). Significant Spatio-temporal variations of mercury content of the water and that of the muscle tissue were observed (p < 0.01). Significant positive value of correlation coefficient (r) indicates a strong direct relationship between dissolved and muscle metal. The reason for high concentrations of heavy metal in oyster muscle sampled from the stations in the western sector of Indian Sundarbans estuarine region may be the hyposaline aquatic media and growing trend of industrialization along the banks of River Hooghly.

Keywords: Saccostrea cucullata, mercury, Inductively Coupled Mass Spectrometer, Indian Sundarbans.