A SHORT NOTE ON THE ACCUMULATION OF ZINC, COPPER AND IRON IN THE POLYCHAETE NEPHTYS HOMBERGI COLLECTED FROM THE TYNE ESTUARY IN ENGLAND

Because of the increasing threat posed by heavy metal pollution of the sea, much work has been done recently to help understand the mechanisms of heavy metal accumulation in marine animals. Some organisms, particularly bivalve molluscs, have received a great deal of attention while other organisms, such as the polychaete Nephtys hombergi, have received little attention. The present brief observations are presented here as one of the first contributions made concerning metal accumulation in this species.