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Handbook of Acute Toxicity of Chemicals to Fish and Aquatic Invertebrates - Summaries of toxicity tests conducted at Columbia National Fisheries Research Laboratory, 1965-78 By Waynon W. Johnson' and Mack T. Finley U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Columbia National Fisheries Research Laboratory Columbia, Missouri 65201 Introduction Acute toxicity is a major subject of research at Columbia National Fisheries Research Laboratory for evaluating the impact of toxic chemicals on fishery resources. The Laboratory has played a leading role in developing research technology for toxicity testing and data interpretation. In 1965-78, more than 400 chemicals were tested against a variety of inver- tebrates and fish species representative of both cold- and warm-water habitats. The use of acute toxicity tests for assessing the potential hazard of chemical contaminants to aquatic organisms is well documented (Boyd 1957; Henderson et al. 1960; Sanders and Cope 1966; Macek and McAllister 1970). Static acute toxicity tests provide rapid and (within limits) reproducible concentration- response curves for estimating toxic effects of chem- icals on aquatic organisms. These tests provide a data base for determining relative toxicity of a large number of chemicals to a variety of species and for estimating acute effects of chemical spills on natural aquatic systems; they also assist in determining prior- ity and design of additional toxicity studies. Acute toxicity tests usually provide estimates of the exposure concentration causing 50% mortality (LC50) to test organisms during a specified period of time. For certain invertebrates, the effective concentration is based on immobilization, or some other identifiable endpoint, rather than on lethality. The application of the LC50 has gained acceptance among toxicologists and is generally the most highly rated test for assessing potential adverse effects of chemical con- taminants to aquatic life (Brungs and Mount 1978; American Institute for Biological Sciences 1978x). 1Present address: Office of Environment (AE/ECE), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 95067, Atlanta, Georgia 30347. The literature contains numerous papers dealing with the acute toxicity of chemicals to freshwater organisms. However, there is a tremendous need for a concise compendium of toxicity data covering a large variety of chemicals and test species. This Handbook is a compilation of a large volume of acute toxicity data from the Columbia Laboratory and its field laboratories. It presents definitive acute toxicity data on 271 chemicals tested against a variety of fresh- water invertebrates and fishes. The chemicals repre- sent all major groups of pesticides, as well as numer- ous industrial chemicals. This compilation should serve as a useful data base for the many agencies and organizations dealing with research and management programs concerned with the impact of chemicals on aquatic resources. The Columbia Laboratory has played a major role in developing currently used standard methodology for static acute toxicity testing. The use of standardized methodology greatly reduces variation in results. The data presented here have been carefully scrutinized to eliminate tests that failed to follow acceptable proce- dures. Handling of test organisms and procedures for static toxicity tests followed those described by Lennon and Walker (1964) and Macek and McAllister (1970), and conform well with those recommended by Brauhn and Schoettger (1975) and the Committee on Methods for Toxicity Tests with Aquatic Organisms (1975). The species of fish and invertebrates that were tested are listed in phylogenetic order in Tables 1 and 2. Fish were obtained from Federal and State hatch- eries as either eggs or fry. Original stocks of inver- tebrates were collected and cultured from wild popu- lations with no known source of contamination; these populations were replenished regularly. The inver- tebrates were cultured in the Laboratory by methods similar to those described by Sanders and Cope (1966). Test chemicals usually consisted of technical or ana- lytical grade samples of known purity. Formulations