EFFECT OF BENZENE AND XYLENE ON THE BEHAVIOUR SURVIVAL AND OXYGEN CONSUMPTION OF THE SHRIMP MACROBRACHIUM NIPPONENSE

Abstract

The present study was condacted under laboratory conditions to reveal the effect of benzene and xylene on some physiological aspects of Macrobrachium nipponense such as: behaviour, survival and oxygen concumption rate. A number of changes in the behaviour were noticed in respected to the acute toxicity experiment . These changes were different in benzene and xylene, which represented by increasing in activities of swimming, jumping,in moving around in the jar in circule, upturns on the back then become motionless and finally die . The concentration that kills half of the treated individuals LCso for benzene was 2.933 ppm and for xylene was 4.266 ppm in 22±1Cº. The results showed a decrease in the oxygen concumption rate with higher concentration. The oxygen concumption rate in 2ppm benzene reached 0.195 mg/O2/gm/h.While in the same concentration of xylene it reached 0.390 mg/O2/gm/h. Compared with the control (0.537 mg/O2/gm/h) .