Shell shape as indicator of pollution in marine gastropods affected by imposex

Abstract

Tributyltin (TBT) and other pollutants are present in Patagonia, and are associated with maritime traffic and human activities. Cause–effect relationship between TBT and imposex development in females of marine gastropods is well documented. We tested whether the imposex incidence associated with TBT pollution is related to detectable shell-shape variations in the edible marine snail (Buccinanops globulosus). We compared shell shape of B. globulosus in six contiguous sites on a gradient of imposex and maritime traffic, by using geometric morphometric analysis. Our results indicated that the registered differences in shell shape are associated to imposex incidence in the harbour zone where previous works have detected TBT pollution. Gastropods from areas of high maritime traffic presented a rounded shell with a shorter spire, and a smaller relative size of the shell aperture, whereas the opposite shape (fusiform shape, elongated-spired shell and bigger relative size of the shell aperture) occurred in gastropod shells from areas of low maritime traffic. Shell variation registered here could be useful to detect TBT pollution in populations of B. globulosus and another neogastropod species.