7851

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 7851
• Author: Waddell, B. and T. May
• Title: Selenium Concentrations in the Razorback Sucker ‎(
• USFW Year: 1995
• Copyright Material: YES

Selenium-mthe Razorback Sucker

325

TIlble3..Seleoium c:oocentratiODS in muscle plugs'oompared to c:ooceOCIationsfoundin.a4jaoeot4l1~letissue; Results exp~;as.p.glgdry
weight ,.;. r",j. v . .J?

,:"; 1-

C.V.
(%)

Species

Razorback suck~

Muscle
Location plug
dorsal 3.4
posterior 3.2
anterior 3.6
3.4 f 0.2"
;. dorsal.. 5.9
posteri?f . 6.8
anterior 5.6
6.1 :!:0.6
dorsal 8.7
posterior 9.2
anterior 8.8
8.9:!: 03
. .dorsal 13.
posterior.. 13.
. anterior 14.
13. :!: 0.2
dorsal 4.8
posterior 3.9
anterior 2.4
3.7:!: 1.2
dorsal 6.5
posterior 7.2
anterior 5.6
6.4 :!: 0.8
dorsal 5.2
posterior 5.4
anterior 2.9
4.5 :!: 1.4
dorsal 6.8d
posterior 7.ft
anterior 6.1

CommoI!. Cl!IP

"
,

~'
. Q(p

Common Carp

Flannelmouth sucker

Flannelmoutb sucker

Flannelmouth sucker

Mean pair testing
LSD = .0.57 ,.a= 0.05

C.V:-
(%)

"MU$;:le';
. tissue"

3.2
2.7
3.2
. 3:0:!: 0.3
'5.8
5.9'
6.0
5.9i:!: 0: 1
,: 8.5
.;~8.1
8.9
8.7 :!:0.2
13.2
14.0
13.8
14. :!: 0.4
4.6
4.5
4.7
4.6:!:0.1
5.8
6.6
6.1
6.2 :!: 0.4
5.0
5.1
5.4
5.2:!: 0.2
6.6
6.8d
6.g<I

4.0

9.5

'1.8

1.7

3.3

2.3

L5

3.0

32.4

2.2

12.5

6.5

31.1

.C.V, . = cOefficient 'of variatiOll
barcbivedfreezerspCciIhen
cmean :!:~devilitio.n
dmean difference exceeds lsD when paired with mean from anterior muscle plug (6.07)

icant correlation between muScle plllgmass and selenium con-
centration (r = +0.32).
Eggs (2 g) and milt (2 mL) from razorback suckers that were
collected from Razorback Bar were analyzed for selenium by
Hamilton and Waddell (1994), and these results are indicated in
Table 2. Eggs had selenium concentrations that were above
those found in control fish from laboratory studies or reference
fIsh from fIeld studies. Concentrations of selenium in eggs and
milt were significantly correlated with selenium concentrations
in muscle plugs taken from the same fIsh (Hamilton and Wad-
dell 1994). Concentrations of selenium found in skeletal muscle
and eggs of razorback suckers may be a cause of reproductive
problems responsible for the decline of this species in the Colo-
rado River basin.

Evaluation of Muscle Plug Technique

Selenium concentrations in muscle plugs and adjacent muscle
tissue taken from three different areas of the same fIsh are
shown in Table 3 for a frozen razorback sucker and for common
carp and flanoelmouth suckers collected from the Colorado

River basin. A signifIcant correlation was found between sele-
nium concentrations in muscle plugs and muscle tissue col-
lected from the same location and fIsh (r = 0.97, P =0.01, n =
21). Selenium concentrations from the three plug locations had
coefficients of variation ranging from 1.5 to 32.4%. Whereas
coefficients of variation were less than 10 % for muscle plugs
from razorback sucker and common carp, flannelmouth suckers
exhibited greater variation (12.5 to 32.4%). In each flannel-
mouth sucker, the selenium concentration in the anterior mus-
cle plug was a source of increased variation, as this value was
noticeably less than selenium concentrations from dorsal and
posterior plugs. The source of variation does not seem to be
analytical and may be more related to differences in anterior
plug composition. Selenium concentrations in muscle tissue
collected adjacent to each plug had coefficients of variation less
than 10% for all three fIsh species.
To test whether selenium' concentrations in muscle plugs
were signifIcantly different from each other or from those in
adjacent muscle tissue, selenium concentrations from the same
location (anterior, dorsal, or posterior) and tissue type (plug or
muscle) were pooled and the means computed. Table 3 shows
the results of means testing by Fisher's Least Significant Differ-