Biomonitoring of a Nile Delta Lake using benthic foraminifera.

ABSTRACT: Lake Edku, one of the northern Nile Delta lakes, is a shallow brackish coastal lake subjected to domestic and agricultural effluents via two main drains, El-Khairy and Barsik, in addition to the discharge water of hundreds of fish farms. This study measures the responses of the benthic foraminiferal assemblage to the environmental stressors in Lake Edku. Grain size, organic carbon, and seven potentially toxic elements (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Ni, and As) were determined in nine short cores (25-35 cm depth). The lake was characterized by vertical increase in mud, organic matter, and concentrations of all metals, particularly in the eastern basin at the vicinity of the drain discharges. This trend coincides with a general decrease in species diversity and increase in deformed specimens. The fora

SUBMITTER: BadrElDin AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9640433 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature