Journal of Environmental Biology September, 2009  On line Copy On line Copy On line Copy On line Copy Accumulation of lead and copper in Rhizophora apiculata from Setiu mangrove forest, Terengganu, Malaysia B.Y. Kamaruzzaman* 1 , M.C. Ong 2 , K.C.A. Jalal 1 , S. Shahbudin 1 and O. Mohd Nor 1 1 Institute of Oceanography and Maritime Studies, International Islamic University Malaysia, Jalan Istana Bandar Indera Mahkota, 25200 Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia 2 Faculty of Maritime Studies and Marine Science, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030 Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia (Received: March 21, 2008; Revised received: August 10, 2008; Accepted:September 29, 2008) Abstract: The accumulative partitioning of Pb and Cu in the Rhizophora apiculata was studied randomly in the Setiu mangrove forest, Terengganu. Samples of leaves, barks and roots were collected randomly from the selected studied species. Sediments between the roots of the sampled mangrove plants were also collected. The results from analysis for Rhizophora apiculata shows that the concentration of Pb and Cu were accumulated higher in root tissue compared to bark and leaf tissue but lower than surrounding sediment level. The average concentration of Cu for Rhizophora apiculata in leaf, bark, root and sediment was 2.73 , 3.94 , 5.21 and 9.42 mg l -1 , respectively. Meanwhile, the average concentration of Pb in leaf, bark, root and sediment was 1.43 , 1.38 , 2.05 and 11.66 mg l -1 , respectively. Results of concentration factors (CF) show that the overall the concentration of Pb and Cu were accumulated much higher in roots system of Rhizophora apiculata. Key words: Setiu mangrove forest, Rhizophora apiculata, Lead, Copper PDF of full length paper is available online Introduction Mangrove ecosystems are highly productive and play a vital role as a major primary producer within estuarine systems. The uniqueness of Rhizophora apiculata root systems serve as habitat and nursery area for many juvenile fish and crustaceans, which have both direct and indirect socio-economic importance and are of great importance to many scientific studies. They also provide erosion mitigation and stabilization for adjacent coastal landforms (Harty, 1997). In a plant-soil system, strong absorption and fixation of heavy metals by soil can easily cause residual accumulation in the soil, resulting in over-absorption of heavy metals by growing plants (Lian et al., 1999; Rajkumar et al., 2007). These plant products are harmful to the health of humans (Defew et al., 2005). For this reason, it is important and necessary to study the relation between the content of heavy metals in soil and the absorption and accumulation by plants (Lian et al., 1999). Little is known about the specific effects and bioaccumulation mechanisms of heavy metals in mangroves, although it is generally considered that mangroves show the ability to accumulate metals and possess a certain tolerance to relatively high levels of heavy metal pollution (Thomas and Eong, 1984). In Malaysia, pyroligneous acid of Rhizophora apiculata species has been used for ages as sterilizing agent, deodorizer, fertilizer, antimicrobial and growth promoting agent (Loo et al ., 2006). Cu are essential plant micronutrients, and their uptake and allocation to plant organs such as photosynthetic leaf tissue is high and active. Conversely, Pb is both non-essentials to plant growth and of very low solubility. Its uptake is passive, and its translocation from roots to other plant organs is generally low (Baker and Walker, 1990; De Lacerda and Abrao, 1986). Generally, accumulation does occur at the root level, with restricted transport to aerial portions of the plants. These indicate that plants actively avoid the uptake of trace metals. Many studies had been carried out on various plants to determine its heavy metal accumulation capability (Silva et al., 2006; Yu et al., 2007). They play an important role as a filter and natural pollution treatment centre because of the specialty of its root system thant manage to control the water quality and trap the sediments as well as particulates which are transported by the current into the oceans from the estuaries (Clark et al., 1998). In view of the importance of the mangrove to various aspects of the environment, research on the concentration of lead (Pb) and copper (Cu) in leaf, bark and root in mangrove plants of Rhizophora apiculata species as well as distribution of two heavy metals in sediment was carried out. Materials and Methods Sampling sites: Sampling was conducted at Setiu mangrove forest, which is located 20 km to north of Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia and facing the south China Sea. The study area has a diverse ecosystem with various natural resources, vast array of biological diversity and coastal and riverine fishing activities (Fig. 1). Samples were collected at the identified area where the species of interest can be found. Coordinates of the location are to be recorded prior to the sample collection. The samples are to be taken at the same time and * Corresponding author: kama@iiu.edu.my Journal of Environmental Biology September 2009, 30(5) 821-824 (2009) ©Triveni Enterprises, Lucknow (India) For personal use only Free paper downloaded from: ww w. jeb.co.in Commercial distribution of this copy is illegal