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OJVRTM
Online Journal of Veterinary Research©
Volume 11(2):23-37,
2007
Earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris)
as indicator
of heavy metals in soils
Mahmoud
HM
Department
of Biology, Faculty of Science and Engineering,
ABSTRACT
Mahmoud HM Earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris)
as bioindicator of heavy metal in soil. Online journal of
Veterinary Research 11(2):23-37, 2007. The
important role of earthworms in the biomagnification of heavy metals in terrestrial
ecosystems
and its role in the transfer of heavy metals toward higher trophic
levels are widely recognized. In the present study the bioconcentration
levels of essential (Cu, Fe, and Zn) and non-essential (Cd,
and Pb) heavy metals were measured in soil
and
earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris)
samples to evaluate soil contamination in different habitats and the
validity
of earthworm as a bioindicator of soil
contamination
and the selected ecosystems health status. Both
soil and earthworms were sampled from Abu Rawash
(about 8 km to the North of Giza
Governorate) representing
areas polluted by agricultural activities; Mostorod
(about 10 Km to the North of Cairo) representing area moderately
polluted by
industry to examine whether earthworms populations originating from
differently
polluted terrestrial habitats differ in their tendency to accumulate
heavy
metals or not. For each of
the metals, evidence suggests that
bioconcentration depends on the metal concentrations in the soil;
bioconcentration is greater at lower soil concentrations. Eearthworms’
collected
from industrial area exhibited different storage capacity and different
concentration factors (concentration in animal/concentration in soil),
effective bioaccumulation of some heavy metals by earthworm, revealed a
strong
influence from industrial pollution on the biotic community. This study
for the
first time presents data on the impact of 
heavy
metal
pollution on earthworms in
KEY WORDS: Earthworms,
soil, heavy metals, bioconcentration,