The depuration patterns of sediment-bound metals in the mussels and the clams
following radiolabeled pulse feeding are shown in Figs. 1–3. The depuration pattern for
each metal was generally similar in sediment with different geochemical properties.
Metals were lost rapidly within the first 1 day, followed by a much slower loss. The AE,
calculated as the % of metals retained after 60 h of depuration, was highest for Zn
(ranging from 17 to 50% in the mussels and from 11 to 53% in the clams) (Table 1). Cr
was the least assimilated metal, with AE ranging from 5 to 20% in the mussels and from
4 to 20% in the clams. Assimilation of Cd was intermediate between Cr and Zn. There
was however notable variation of metal AE determined among different experiments.