Northern Adriatic anchovies (Engraulis encrasicholus) and the sardine (Sardina pilchardus), were sampled from catches landed at the Mirna Cannery in Rovinj, Yugoslavia (now Croatia), during the 1972 fishing season (June to December) and part of the 1973 fishing season (March to June).Fish were usually caught using night light and purse seine 12-18 hours earlier, within 15-30 km of Rovinj. Each sample consisted of a minimum of six and up to sixty specimens of each species. The standard length and weight of each fish was measured. Fish were then dissected into component parts: skin (including scales), gills, muscle, digestive tract, liver, kidney, gonads and brain. For each species, these components were then pooled according to type, weighed, dried to a constant weight at 110°C, ground to homogeneous meal in a porcelain mortar, and stored in a glass desiccator until analyzed.After further processing, samples were analysed for mercury, copper, nickel, silver, cadmium and lead using a Perkin-Elmer 303 atomic absorption spectrophotometer.
This study was initiated to gather baseline information on the levels of mercury, copper, nickel, silver, cadmium and lead in different tissues of the sardine, Sardina pilchardus, and the anchovy, Engraulis encrasicholus, harvested from the northern Adriatic Sea. Seasonal variation in levels of these metals was also investigated.
At the time that this research was carried out, the shallow northern region of the Adriatic Sea received industrial wastes from large industrial centers located along the eastern coast at Rijeka and Pula, Yugoslavia (now Croatia), and more extensive industrial concentrations on the Gulf of Trieste and the western coast near Venice, Italy. The Reno, Po, Adige, and Isonzo rivers also discharged their industrial pollutant loads into the northern Adriatic.
