WINKLER ET AL.: EFFECTS OF BENZO(A)PYRENE ON CALIFORNIA GRUNION 



FIGURE 3. — California grunion incubated in decon- 

 taminated seawater, 14-d postfertilization: a) newly 

 hatched larvae, with no benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) present 

 (control) (90X); b) embryos, initially containing 24 

 ppbBaP(540X). 



it should be emphasized that this study was not un- 

 dertaken to duplicate field conditions of environ- 

 mental exposure of California grunion eggs 

 incubating in contaminated sands, although our 

 results suggest that such studies are warranted. 



Another difficulty was the decline of dissolved BaP 

 over the 2-wk span in which the embryos were ex- 

 posed (Fig. 1). This decline occurred despite pre- 

 cautions such as wrapping the jars to prevent 



photooxidation and opening the jars for daily inspec- 

 tion only under subdued light filtered free of ul- 

 traviolet wavelengths which degrade BaP. Loss of 

 BaP could be caused, perhaps, by oxidation and 

 adherence to glass, in addition to the uptake and 

 metabolism of BaP by the embryos themselves. 

 Felton et al. (1982) demonstrated that 16-20 ppb of 

 crystalline BaP could be dissolved with agitation. 

 This concentration could not be maintained, 



477 



