Physiological responses of a marine fish exposed to chlorinated seawater at concentrations near its avoidance threshold

To determine if avoidance of chlorinated seawater by fish resulted in physiological protection from toxicity, studies were carried out which assessed (a) changes in the routine oxygen consumption rate and (b) the ability of treated fish to successfully compete with untreated conspecifics for a limited food resource.Temperate marine damselfish, Chromis punctipinnis, were exposed to stepwise increasing levels of chlorinated seawater in a behaviour chamber and avoided total residual oxidant (TRO) levels greater than 0·15-0·16 mg/litre. Cumulative exposures ranged from the equivalent of 0·38-5·23 in at 1·0/litre TRO. One day after exposure, routine oxygen consumption rates were decreased by 25 to 45% from pre-exposure rates and were correlated with the cumulative oxidant exposure. One month post exposure, respiration rates returned to pre-treatment levels. This transient depression of the respiratory rate did not affect survival or growth of chlorine-treated fish which were forced to compete with untreated conspecifics for a restricted food supply.