The use of sponges as biomonitoring organisms has
previously been proposed as a supplementary component
to established monitoring programmes. This
study has shown that the cosmopolitan marine demosponge
Halichondria panicea Pallas accumulated Cu,
Zn and Cd in direct proportion to the concentration of
the dissolved metals in the surrounding medium. High
metal accumulation rates were measured. In addition,
there was no apparent loss of accumulated metals upon
transfer to clean seawater after an initial flushing of the
water canals. In view of the large volumes of water
passing through the bodies of H. panicea, this species is
proposed as a suitable biomonitoring organism.
A good biomohitoring programme should contain as