title: Biological weighting function for the mortality of Boeckella gracilipes (Copepoda, Crustacea) derived from experiments with natural solar radiation.
abstract: We performed in situ experiments during the austral summer of 1998 to quantify the mortality of the fresh-water copepod Boeckella gracilipes as a function of the UV dose. The copepods were exposed to solar radiation at the water-surface for approximately 24-34 h. Long-pass cut-off filters (Schott) were used in the exposure experiments. UV radiation and PAR were measured with an IL-1700 (International Light Inc.) and a PUV-500 radiometer (Biospherical Instruments Inc.). A biological weighting function for UV-induced mortality was calculated by fitting a model based on a logistic curve. Our results show that UV damage in this species is strongly wavelength- and dose-dependent. B. gracilipes was highly vulnerable to both UV-B (290-320 nm) and UV-A radiation (< 360 nm). The shape of the BWF obtained for B. gracilipes resembles more closely the action spectra (AS) for UV-induced erythema, than the AS for naked DNA.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Zoology and Limnology, University of Innsbruck, Austria. barbara.tartarotti@uibk.ac.at
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tartarotti
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Cravero
authors.forename: H E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Zagarese
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003445:Crustacea / Q000528:radiation effects*; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D013472:Sunlight