Bivalves are commonly used in biomonitoring programs to track pollutants. Several features, including its filter-feeding abilities, cumulatively argue in favour of the use of the Asian clam (Corbicula fluminea) as a biosentinel and an ecotoxicological model. Filtration in bivalves is very sensitive to external stimuli and its control is dictated by regulation of the opening/closure of the valves, which may be used as an avoidance defence against contaminants. Here, we investigate the filter-feeding behaviour of the Asian clam as an endpoint for assessing exposure to pollutants, driven by two complementary goals: (i) to generate relevant and sensitive toxicological information based on the ability of C. fluminea to clear an algal suspension, using the invasive species as a surrogate for native bivalves; (ii) to gain insight on the potential of exploring this integrative response in the refinement of chemical control methods for this pest. Clearance rates and proportion of algae removed were measured using a simple and reproducible protocol. Despite some variation across individuals and size classes, 50–90% of food particles were generally removed within 60–120 min by clams larger than 20 mm. Removal of algae was sensitive to an array of model contaminants with biocide potential, including fertilizers, pesticides, metals and salts: eight out of nine tested substances were detected at the μg l⁻¹ or mg l⁻¹ range and triggered valve closure, decreasing filter-feeding in a concentration-dependent manner. For most toxicants, a good agreement between mortality (96 h − LC₅₀ within the range 0.4–5500 mg l⁻¹) and feeding (2 h − IC₅₀ within the range 0.005–2317 mg l⁻¹) was observed, demonstrating that a 120-min assay can be used as a protective surrogate of acute toxicity. However, copper sulphate was very strongly avoided by the clams (IC₅₀ = 5.3 μg l⁻¹); on the contrary, dichlorvos (an organophosphate insecticide) did not cause feeding depression, either by being undetected by the clams’ chemosensors and/or by interfering with the valve closure mechanism. Such an assay has a large potential as a simple screening tool for industry, environmental agencies and managers. The ability of dichlorvos to bypass the Asian clam’s avoidance strategy puts it in the spotlight as a potential agent to be used alone or combined with others in eradication programs of this biofouler in closed or semi-closed industrial settings.

双壳动物通常用于生物监测程序中以追踪污染物。包括过滤器喂食功能在内的几个特征逐渐表明，应将亚洲蛤（Corbicula fluminea）用作生物前哨和生态毒理学模型。双瓣阀的过滤对外部刺激非常敏感，其控制是通过调节阀门的打开/关闭来决定的，可将其用作避免污染的防护措施。在这里，我们调查了亚洲蛤的滤食性行为，以此作为评估污染物暴露的一个终点，这是由两个互补的目标驱动的：（i）根据流感嗜血杆菌的能力生成相关和敏感的毒理学信息使用入侵物种作为天然双壳类动物的替代品，清除藻类悬浮液；（ii）深入了解探索这种综合反应在改进该害虫化学防治方法方面的潜力。使用简单且可重复的方案测量清除率和去除的藻类比例。尽管个体和大小级别有所不同，但通常在60-120分钟内会用大于20毫米的蛤removed去除50-90％的食物颗粒。藻类的去除对一系列具有杀生物潜能的模型污染物敏感，包括肥料，农药，金属和盐：在9种被测物质中，有8种以μgl ^-1或mgl ^-1被检测到。范围和触发阀关闭，以浓度依赖的方式减少过滤器供料。对于大多数有毒物质，观察到死亡率（96 h – LC ₅₀在0.4–5500 mg l ^-1范围内）和进食（2 h − IC ₅₀在0.005–2317 mg l ^-1范围内）之间有很好的一致性，表明120分钟的分析可以用作急性毒性的保护性替代物。但是，蛤strongly强烈避免使用硫酸铜（IC ₅₀  = 5.3μgl ^-1）; 相反，敌敌畏（一种有机磷酸酯杀虫剂）并没有由于蛤类的化学传感器未检测到和/或干扰了阀门的关闭机制而导致采食量降低。这种测定法作为用于工业，环境机构和管理人员的简单筛选工具具有很大的潜力。敌敌畏有能力绕开亚洲蛤的回避策略，使其成为可能的药剂，可以在封闭或半封闭工业环境中单独使用或与其他生物杀虫剂结合使用以消灭该生物污垢剂。