One of the most reliable methods of the environmental monitoring of marine ecosystems, especially the ones characterized by sizeable populations, is the use of populations of vertebrate animals, and fish in particular. Many authors point to the specific suitability of fish larvae for environmental monitoring. Fish larvae have rapid metabolism, which translates to more intensive toxicological effects.The aim of the study was to assess the quality of the aquatic environment in three bays of Sevastopol, based on the determined content of Ba, B, Sr and As and bioaccumulation of these elements in the water and in fish larvae of the genus Atherinidae L.Larvae were caught in July 2012, in the coastal shallow water, at a depth of 1 m, using a fishing net. Samples of fish larvae were subjected to wet digestion in a closed system with the use of microwave energy. The concentration of the analyzed elements in the samples was determined using atomic emission spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma. The results of mean element concentrations were compared using Student's t-test, at the significance level of p = 0.01. The element content in water was similar to that observed in unpolluted water bodies. The average concentration of Ba, B, Sr and As in water was, respectively: 46.52; 1428; 7737 and 1.821 µg dm-3, whereas the mean content of these elements in the biomass of fish larvae was: 1.550 mg Ba kg-1; 70.90 mg B kg-1; 21.40 mg Sr kg-1 and 1.829 mg As kg-1. The highest barium and strontium content in the studied fish larvae was found in samples taken in Omega Bay. The highest arsenic content was found in organisms from the bays Omega and Karantinnaya, while the largest content of boron was found in the larvae from the bays Omega and Golubaya. The values of the bioaccumulation coefficient for the analyzed elements in Atherinidae L. fish larvae can be ordered as follows: As >B> Ba> Sr. The most severely contaminated with Ba, Sr, As and B were the costal parts of Golubaya, Karantinnaya, Omega Bays.

23.3.2018