Rank Ordering of Species Sensitivities to Chemicals: Discrepancies between Behavioral and Lethal Responses in Freshwater and Marine Invertebrates

Locomotor behavioral responses are increasingly recognized as sensitive and ecologically relevant indicators for assessing aquatic organism exposure to contaminants. They often occur at concentrations lower than those causing physiological damage, yet their consequences for organisms’ fitness and population dynamics remain unclear. Moreover, it is still uncertain how these behavioral endpoints align with traditional toxicological apical endpoints used to assess species sensitivities in risk assessment. This study evaluates the correlation between thresholds triggering locomotor reactions with LC50 values across 19 freshwater and 12 marine invertebrate species exposed to the insecticide imidacloprid and metal copper. Behavioral responses were measured via videotracking during pulse exposure assays, while 96h acute tests provided species-specific LC50 values for copper. Results reveal strong discrepancies: some highly sensitive species showed no locomotor changes, whereas others that were tolerant to lethality displayed strong movement responses. For instance, freshwater annelids and gastropods responded markedly to imidacloprid, while marine shrimp exhibited hyperactivity under low copper levels. These findings indicate that relying solely on lethality-based data may underestimate the fraction of species affected by contamination. Integrating behavioral endpoints into population risk assessment frameworks is therefore crucial to better protect aquatic biodiversity.