Air Quality Criteria for Lead Volume II of II - (NEPIS)(EPA) - US ...

Table AX7-2.3.1. Bioconcentration Factors for Aquatic Plants
BCF Species Test Conditions Reference
840 to 2700
(measured digestion)
1150 to 3560
(measured solution)
Duckweed
(Lemna minor)
16,000 to 20,000 Alga (Cladophora
glomerata)
AX7-151
21 days, Pb-nitrate Rahmani and Sternberg
(1999)
Duckweed 21 days, Pb-nitrate Rahmani and Sternberg
(1999)
not specified Keeney et al. (1976)
Table AX7-2.3.2. Bioconcentration Factors for Aquatic Invertebrates
BCF Species Test Conditions Reference
738 Snail (Physa integra) 28 days, Pb-nitrate Spehar et al. (1978)
1700 Snail (Lymnaea palustris) 120 days, Pb-nitrate Borgmann et al. (1978)
499 Caddis fly (Brachycentrus sp.) 28 days, Pb-nitrate Spehar et al. (1978)
1120 Stonefly (Pteronarcys dorsata) 28 days, Pb-nitrate Spehar et al. (1978)
1930 Scud (Hyalella azteca) 4 days, Pb-chloride MacLean et al. (1996)
3670 Midge larvae (Chironomus riparius) 28 days Timmermans et al. (1992)
BCFs for freshwater fish were 42 and 45 for brook trout and bluegill, respectively
(Holcombe et al., 1976; Atchison et al., 1977). Although no BCFs have been reported for
amphibians, Pb-nitrate was reported to accumulate mainly in the ventral skin and in the kidneys
of frogs (Vogiatzis and Loumbourdis, 1999).
Bioconcentration factors and bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) are not necessarily the best
predictors of tissue concentration levels given exposure concentration levels (Kapustka et al.,
2004). The role of homeostatic mechanisms is a major consideration in tissue concentrations
found in exposed biota. Similarly, measuring BCFs and BAFs in organisms may not accurately
reflect how metals are treated within the organisms (e.g., partitioning to specific organelles,