Acute toxicity of cadmium, copper, lead and zinc to tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon postlarvae

The acute toxicity of cadmium, copper, lead and zinc to Penaeus monodon (Tiger prawn) was evaluated in static renewal tests. Each test lasted up to 4 days and 96 hours LC₅₀ values were calculated. The toxicity of each metal increased with exposure time for cadmium, copper, lead and zinc respectively. The 96 hours LC₅₀ values based on the measured concentration for cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc were 1.72, 0.66, 0.41, 2.36 mg/l. Lead was toxic to P.monodon than zinc followed by cadmium and copper tested. The order of toxicity was Pb>Cu>Cd>Zn. Our results found that postlarvae are well protected by both the current CCME Canadian water quality guidelines for the protection of aquatic life, as LC₅₀ values were at least 25 times higher than the guideline concentrations.