Use of <i>Eisenia fetida</i> as a Biological Risk Marker in a Qualitative Eco Assessment Test of a Romanian Watercourse
Romeo T. Cristina,
Mihai Baroga,
Eugenia Dumitrescu,
Florin Muselin,
Alexandru O. Doma,
Dan Manea,
Ioan Banatean-Dunea
Affiliations
Romeo T. Cristina
Departments of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Mihai Baroga
Departments of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Eugenia Dumitrescu
Departments of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Florin Muselin
Department of Toxicology, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Alexandru O. Doma
Department of Toxicology, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Dan Manea
Department of Ecology, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Ioan Banatean-Dunea
Department of Ecology, Banat University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine from Timisoara, Calea Aradului 119, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
The qualitative trials were conducted by exposing earthworms to diverse contaminants sources using standard earthworms’ avoidance tests (considered useful ab initio indicators). For two years, we observed the Jiu River pollution points. We observed soil traits in 15 sampling points from two neighboring Romanian counties where Jiu River flows, by evaluating the risk of pollution on Eisenia fetida earthworms. The ISO: 11268-2:2015 acute static test was used, following the ethological and bodily features of E. fetida earthworms for 14 days, and then the results obtained for clean soils vs. those presumed polluted were statistically analyzed. Results disclosed statistically significant values (p p p p p < 0.01) confirmed that, in the case of soil samples collected from 10 and 30 m from the Jiu River’s axis, the earthworms did not gain weight, qualitatively attesting the pollution suspicion/presence of chemical factors potentially pernicious for earthworms.
