Determination of the Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Avicennia Marina from Bardestan Estuary, Bushehr Province, with an Emphasis on the Enrichment Coefficient

A. marina from aquatic plants is widely distributed throughout Bardestan estuary (Bushehr, Iran). This study examined the uptake of some metals by A. marina and their translocation from the roots to other parts of the plant. For this purpose, samples of sediment, and mangrove roots and leaves were taken from the Bardestan mangrove. Samples were dried in the laboratory and digested in concentrated acids and their metal content was measured using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry. The enrichment coefficients in leaves of A. marina were smaller than 1.0 for all the studied metals. Similarly, the enrichment coefficients of all the metals (Zn, Ni, Cu, Pb, Cd), in roots of A. marina were smaller than 1.0. This study demonstrated that A. marina behaves as an excluder plant and could be considered as either a bio-indicator or a bio-accumulator in sediments and waters polluted by heavy metals.