Abstract

TRIANA VELASQUEZ, TEÓFILA MARÍA; MONTES ROJAS, CLAUDIA MARSELA  and  BERNAL BAUTISTA, MANUEL HERNANDO. Lethal and Sublethal Effects of Glyphosate (Roundup® Active) to Embryos of Colombian Anurans. Acta biol.Colomb. [online]. 2013, vol.18, n.2, pp.271-278. ISSN 0120-548X.

Glyphosate is an herbicide widely used in agriculture, which may affect non-target species. The aim of this study was to determine the lethal (Median lethal concentration - LC₅₀) and sublethal effects (changes on body size and development) of glyphosate (Roundup^® Active) to embryos of four anuran species, exposed during 96 hours under laboratory and microcosmtests. Under laboratory conditions, Engystomops pustulosus was the most tolerant species (LC₅₀ = 3033,18 µg a.e./L) and Rhinella marina was the most sensitive (LC₅₀ = 1421,46 µg a.e./L), which also showed a delayed development and significantly reduced body size. The other species had an intermediate LC₅₀ (Rhinella humboldti = 2899,54 µg a.e./L; Hypsiboas crepitans = 2151,88 µg a.e./L). In all cases, the laboratory LC₅₀ was lower than the concentration used in field (5392,92 µg a.e./L), indicating a high toxic effect. In the microcosm tests, embryos of E. pustulosus were the most tolerant (LC₅₀ = 19,41 kg a.e./ha), while R. humboldti were the most sensitive (LC₅₀ = 10,61 kg a.e./ha). In this case, all four study species had a higher LC₅₀ than the concentration sprayed in field (3,69 kg a.e./ ha), so a lower lethal effect, and there were no significant differences in body size and development. This result shows that the glyphosate, as the commercial presentation Roundup^® Active, produce a moderate mortality on anuran embryos.

Keywords : anurans; embryos; glyphosate; LC₅₀.

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