Studies were carried out to investigate the contamination of Piracicaba and Mogi-Guaçu River basins (São Paulo State, Southeastern, Brazil) for heavy metals (Cd and Pb), using the limnic bivalve Anodontites trapesialis as a biological monitor. The results showed that the concentrations of Pb were higher than the control group in both basins, showing the bioavailability of this non-essential element in the basins. The concentrations were higher in the Mogi-Guaçu than in the Piracicaba basin, and in the slightly contaminated sites in both basins. There was no correlation between the degree of human impact and Cd and Pb concentrations, it was not possible to infer about concentrations of these heavy metals in the bivalves based only in a broad evaluation of human impact.464673684Abaychi, J.K., Mustafa, Y.Z., The asiatic clam Corbicula fluminea: An indicator of trace metal pollution in the Shatt al-Arab river, Iraq (1988) Environ. Pollut., 54, pp. 109-122Avelar, W.E.P., Nather, F.C., Figueiredo, M.C.G., Casanova, I.C., Lopes, J.L.C., Biological monitoring of organochlorides using the liminic bivalves Anodontites trapesialis (Lam., 1819) (1991) An. Acad. Brasil. Ciênc., 63 (4), pp. 337-343Avelar, W.E.P., Mantelatto, F.L.M., Tomazelli, A.C., Silva, D.M.L., Shuhama, T., Lopes, J.L.C., The marine mussel Perna perna (Mollusca, Bivalvia, Mytilidae) as an indicator of contamination by heavy metals in the Ubatuba Bay, São Paulo, Brazil (2000) Water, Air, Soil Pollut., 118, pp. 65-72Ballester, M.V., Martinelli, L.A., Krusche, A.V., Victoria, R.L., Bernardes, M., Camargo, P.B., Effects of increasing organic matter loading on the dissolved O 2, free dissolved CO2 and respiration rates in the Piracicaba river basin, southeast Brazil (1999) Water Res., 33 (9), pp. 2119-2129Bedford, J.W., Roelofs, E.W., Zabik, M.J., The freshwater mussel as a biological monitor of pesticide concentration in a lotic environment (1968) Limnol. Oceanogr., 13 (1), pp. 118-126Benjamin, M.M., Honeyman, B.D., Trace metals (1992) Global Biogeochemistry Cycles, pp. 317-352. , ed. Butcher, S. S.Charlson, R. J.Orians, G. H. and Wolfe, G. V. Academic Press, LondonBilos, C., Colombo, J.C., Presa, M.J.R., Trace metals in suspended particles, sediments and asiatic clams (Corbicula fluminea) of the Rio de la Plata Estuary, Argentina (1998) Environ. Pollut., 99, pp. 1-11Bodek, I., Lyman, J.W., Rechl, W.F., Rosenblat, D., (1988) Environmental Inorganic Chemistry, , Pergamon Press, New YorkBoldrini, C.V., Padua, H.B., Pereira, D.N., Resende, E.K., Juras, A.A., Contaminação por Hg nos rios Mogi-Guaçu e Pardo (SP) (1983) Revista DAE, 135, pp. 106-117Campbell, J.H., Evans, R.D., Inorganic and organic ligand binding of lead and cadmium and resultant implications for bioavailability (1987) Sci. Total Environm., 62, pp. 219-227Camusso, M., Balestrini, R., Muriano, F., Mariani, M., Use of freshwater mussel Dreissena polymorpha to assess trace metal pollution in the lower river Po (Italy) (1994) Chemosphere, 29 (4), pp. 729-745Capelo, J.L., Lavilha, I., Bendicho, C., Ultrasound-assisted extraction of cadmium from slurried biological samples for eletrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (1998) J. Anal. Atom. Spectrom., 13, pp. 1285-1290Carvalho, C.E.V., Ovalle, A.R.C., Rezende, C.E., Molisani, M.M., Salomão, M.S.M.B., Lacerda, L.D., Seasonal variation of particulate heavy metals in the Lower Paraiba do 'Sul River, R.J., Brazil (1999) Environ. Geol., 37 (4), pp. 297-302(1992) Diagnostico da Poluição Ambiental do Interior do Estado de São Paulo, , São Paulo(1993) Relatório de Qualidade das Águas Inferiores do Estado de São Paulo, , São Paulo(1997) Relatório de Qualidade das Águas Interiores do Estado de São Paulo, , São Paulo(1999) Diagnóstico da Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Mogi-Guaçu - Relatório Zero, , (Compact dise). São Paulo(2000) Relatório de Situaçao dos Recursos Hídricos das Bacias Hidrográficas dos rios Piracicaba, Capivari e Jundiaí -Relatório Zero, , (Compact disc). São PauloCzarnezki, J.M., Use of the pocketbook mussels Lampsilis ventricosa, for monitoring heavy metal pollution in an Ozark Stream (1987) Bull. Environ. Contain. Toxicol., 38, pp. 641-646Daniel, M.H.B., Montebelo, A.A., Bernardes, M.C., Ometto, J.P.H.B., Camargo, P.B., Krusche, A.V., Victoria, R.L., Martinelli, L.A., Effects of urban sewage on dissolved oxygen, dissolved inorganic and organic carbon, and electrical conductivity of small streams along a gradient of urbanization in the Piracicaba river basin (2002) Water, Air, Soil Fallut., 136 (1-4), pp. 189-206De Gregori, I., Delgado, D., Pinochet, H., Gras, N., Muñoz, L., Brhun, C., Navarrete, G., Cadmium, lead, copper and mercury levels in fresh and canned bivalve mussels Tagelus dombeii (Navajuela) and Semelle sólida (Almeja) from the Chilean coast (1994) Sci. Total Environ., 148, pp. 1-10Del Castilho, P., Gerritse, R.G., Marquenie, J.M., Salomons, W., Speciation of heavy metals and in the situ accumulation by Dreissena polymorpha: A new method (1984) Complexation of Trace Metals in Natural Waters, , ed. Kramer, C. J. M.Duinker, J. C. M. and Nijhoff, W. Junk. Publishers, The Hague. 448 ppDomingues, T.F., (2000) Dinâmica do Carbono e Elementos Relacionados nos Rios Piracicaba e Mogi-Guaçu (SP): Avaliação de Duas Bacias Hidrográficas com Diferentes Graus de Desenvolvimento, , Master Dissertation, USP, Piracicaba, São Paulo, BrasilFarrington, J.W., Bivalves as sentinels of coastal chemical pollution: The Mussel (and oyster) Watch (1983) Oceans, 20 (2), pp. 18-29(1993) Guidance Document for Lead in Shellfish, , Center for food safety and applied nutrition. United States Food and Drug Administration. Washington, D.C(1993) Guidance Document for Cadmium in Shellfish, , Center for food safety and applied nutrition. United States Food and Drug Administration. Washington, D.C(1998) Dangers of Lead Still Linger, , ed. Farley, D. United States Food and Drug Administration. FDA Consumer. Washington, D.CFernandes, H.M., Bidone, E.D., Veiga, L.H.S., Patchineelam, S.R., Heavy-metal pollution assessment in the coastal lagoons of Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1994) Environ. Pollut., 85, pp. 259-264Förstner, U., Wittmann, G.T.W., (1983) Metal Pollution in the Aquatic Environment, , Springer-Verlag, New York. 486 ppFoster, R.B., Bates, J.M., Use of freshwater mussels to monitor point source industrial discharges (1978) Environ. Sci. Technol., 12 (8), pp. 958-962Graney, R.L.J., Cherry, D.S., Cairns, J.J., Heavy metal indicator potential of the Asiatic clam (Corbicula fluminea) in artificial stream systems (1983) Hydrobiologia, 102, pp. 81-88Hameed, P.S., Raj, A.I.M., Freshwater mussel, Lamellidens inarginalis (Lamarck) (Mollusca, Bivalvia, Unionidae) as an indicator of river pollution (1990) Chem. Ecol., 4, pp. 57-64Hebling, N.J., The functional anatomy of Anodontites trapezeus (Spix) and Anodontites trapesialis (Lamarck) (Bivalvia: Mycetopodidae) (1976) Bol. Zool. Univ. São Paulo, 15, pp. 265-298Hickey, C.W., Roper, D.S., Buckland, S.J., Metal concentrations of resident and transplanted freshwater mussels Hyridella menziesi (Unionacea: Hyriidae) and sediments in the Waikato river, New Zealand (1995) Sci. Total Environ., 175, pp. 163-177Kraak, M.H.S., Scholten, M.C.Th., Peeters, W.H.M., De Kock, W.Chr., Biomonitoring of heavy metals in the Western European rivers Rhine and Meuse using the freshwater mussel Dreissena polymorpha (1991) Environ. Pollut., 74, pp. 101-114Kraak, M.H.S., Toussaint, M., Blecker, E.A.J., Lavy, D., Metal regulating in two species of freshwater bivalves (1993) Ecotoxicology of Metals in Invertebrates, pp. 175-186. , ed. Dallinger, R. and Rainbow, P.S. Lewis Publishers, Boca RatonKrusche, A.V., Carvalho, F.P., Moraes, J.M., Camargo, P.B., Ballester, M.R.V., Homink, S., Martinelli, L.A., Victoria, R.L., Spatial and temporal water quality variability in the Piracicaba river basin, Brazil (1997) J. Am. Wat. Res. Assoc., 33, pp. 1117-1123Lima, E.D., Krug, F.J., Ferreira, A.T., Barbosa Jr., F., Tungsten-rhodium permanent chemical modifier for cadmium determination in fish slurries by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (1999) J. Anal. Atom. Spectrom., 14, pp. 269-274Lima, E.D., Barbosa Jr., F., Krug, F.J., Guaita, U., Tungsten-rhodium permanent chemical modifier for lead determination in digests of biological materials and sediments by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (1999) J. Anal. Atom. Spectrom., 14, pp. 1601-1605Lopes, J.L.C., Casanova, I.C., Figueiredo, M.C.G., Nather, F.C., Avelar, W.E.P., Anodontites trapesialis: A biological monitor of organochlorine pesticides (1992) Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol., 23, pp. 352-354Malm, O., Pfeiffer, W.C., Fiszman, M., Azcue, J.M., Transport and availability of heavy metals in the Paraiba do Sul-Guandu River system, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil (1988) Sci. Total Environ., 75, pp. 201-209Manly, R., George, W.O., The occurrence of some heavy metals in populations of the freshwater mussel Anodonta anatina (L.) from the river Thames (1977) Environ. Pollut., 14, pp. 139-154Martinelli, L.A., Krusche, A.V., Victoria, R.L., Camargo, P.B., Bernardes, M., Ferraz, E.S., Moraes, J.M., Ballester, M.V., Effects of sewage on the chemical composition of Piracicaba river, Brazil (1999) Water, Air, Soil Pollut., 110 (1-2), pp. 67-79Martinelli, L.A., Ballester, M.V.V., Krusche, A.V., Victoria, R.L., Camargo, P.B., Bernardes, M., Ometto, J.P.H.B., Landcover changes and 513C composition of riverine particulate organic matter in the Piracicaba river basin (Southeast region of Brazil) (1999) Limnol. Oceanogr., 44 (7), pp. 1826-1833McConnell, M.A., Barrel, R.C., The estuarine clam Rangia cuneata (Gray) as a biomonitor of heavy metals under laboratory and field conditions (1995) Am. Malacol. Bull., 11 (2), pp. 191-201Miller-Ihli, N.J., Slurry sample preparation for simultaneous multi-element graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (1988) J. Anal. Atom. Spectrow., 3, pp. 73-81Miller-Ihli, N.J., Advances in ultrasonic slurry graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (1993) Fresen. J. Anal. Chem., 345, pp. 482-489Miller-Ihli, N.J., Influence of slurry preparation on the accuracy of ultrasonic slurry electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (1994) J. Anal. Atom. Spectrom., 9, pp. 1129-1134Millington, P.J., Walker, K.F., Australian freshwater mussel Velesunio ambiguus (Philippi) as a biological monitor for zinc, iron and manganese (1983) Aust. J. Mar. Fresh. Res., 34, pp. 873-892Molisani, M.M., Salomão, M.S.M.B., Ovalle, A.R.C., Rezende, C.E., Lacerda, L.D., Carvalho, C.E.V., Heavy metals in sediments of the Lower Paraíba do Sul River and Estuary, R.J., Brazil (1999) Bull. Environ. Contam. Toxicol., 63, pp. 682-690Naimo, T.J., Waller, D.L., Holland-Bartels, L.E., Heavy metals in the threeridge mussel Amblema plicata plicata (Say, 1817) in the Upper Mississipi river (1992) J. Fresh. Ecol., 7 (2), pp. 209-218Naimo, T.J., A review of the effects of the heavy metals on freshwater mussels (1995) Ecotoxicol., 4, pp. 341-362Novotny, V., Diffuse sources of pollution by toxic metals and impact on receiving waters (1995) Heavy Metals: Problems and Solutions, pp. 33-52. , ed. Salomons, W.Forstner, U. and Mader, P. Springer, BerlinOmetto, J.P.H.B., Martinelli, L.A., Ballester, M.V., Gessner, A., Krusche, A.V., Victoria, R.L., Williams, M., Effects of land use on water chemistry and macroinvertebrates in two streams of the Piracicaba river basin, south-east Brazil (2000) Fresh. Biol., 44, pp. 327-337Phillips, D.J.H., (1980) Quantitative Aquatic Biological Indicators: Their Use to Monitor Trace Metal and Organochlorine Pollution, , Applied Science Publishers, London. 488 ppPhillips, D.J.H., Rainbow, P.S., (1994) Biomonitoring of Trace Aquatic Contaminants, , Chapman and Hall, London. 371 ppRoma, F., Longo, L.L., (1991) Monitoramento de Ambientes Lóticos e Bioensaios Preliminares para Os Metais Pesados Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb e Zn, Utilizando os Bivalves Límnicos Anodontites Trapesialis Lamarck, 1819 e Diplodon Rotundus Grains Wagner, 1827, , Graduation Dissertation, USP, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, BrasilRutzke, M.A., Gutenmann, W.H., Lisk, D.J., Mills, E.L., Toxic and nutrient element concentrations in soft tissues of zebra and quagga mussels from Lakes Erie and Ontario (2000) Chemosphere, 40, pp. 1353-1356Salomão, M.S.M.B., Molisani, M.M., Ovalle, A.R.C., Rezende, C.E., Lacerda, L.D., Carvalho, C.E.V., Particulate heavy metal mass balance in the lower Paraiba do Sul River watershed, southeastern, Brazil (2001) Hydrolog. Proc., 15 (4), pp. 587-593Salomons, W., Förstner, U., Mader, P., (1995) Heavy Metals: Problems and Solutions, , Springer, Berlin. 412pp(1996) Levantamento e Sistematização de Dados Sobre Áreas de Risco, Áreas Degradadas, Áreas Sujeitas a Erosão e Informações Específicas Sobre Resi'ditos Sólidos Domésticos e Sobre Atividades Agrícolas Desenvolvidas Nas Bacias Dos Rios Piracicaba, Capivari e Jundiaí, 2. , Contract number 2000396. Final ReportSecor, C.L., Mills, E.L., Harshbarger, J., Kuntz, H.T., Gutenmann, W.H., Lisk, D.J., Bioaccumulation of toxicants, element and nutrient composition, and soft tissue histology of zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) from New York State waters (1993) Chemosphere, 26 (8), pp. 1559-1575Tessier, A., Couillard, Y., Campbell, P.G.C., Auclair, J.C., Modeling Cd partitioning in oxic lake sediments and Cd concentrations in the freshwater bivalve Anodonta grandis (1993) Limnol. Oceanog., 38 (1), pp. 1-l7Timmermans, K.R., Accumulation and effects of trace metals in freshwater invertebrates (1993) Ecotoxicology of Metals in Invertebrates, pp. 133-148. , ed. Dallinger, R. and Rainbow, P. S. Lewis Publishers, Boca RatonTorres, J.P.M., (1992) Ocorrência e Distribuição de Metais Pesados No Rio Paraibuna, Juiz de Fora, MG, , Master Dissertation, IBCCF, UFRJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 114 ppValdovinos, C., Figueroa, R., Cid, H., Parra, O., Araya, E., Privitera, S., Olmos, V., Transplante de organismos bentonicos entre sistemas lenticos: Refleja la biodisponibilidad de metales traza en el ambiente? (1998) Bol. Socied. Chil. Quim., 43, pp. 467-475Van Hattum, B., Timmermans, K.R., Govers, H.A., Abiotic and biotic factors influencing in situ trace metal levels in macroinvertebrates in freshwater ecosystems (1991) Environ. Toxicol. Chem., 10, pp. 275-292Van Hattum, B., Van Straalen, N.M., Govers, A.J., Trace metals in populations of freshwater isopods: Influence of biotic and abiotic variables (1996) Arch. Environ. Contain. Toxicol., 31, pp. 303-318Villar, C., Stripeikis, J., D'Huicque, L., Tudino, M., Troccoli, O., Bonetto, C., Cd, Cu and Zn concentrations in sediments and the invasive bivalves Limnoperna fortunei and Corbicula fluminea at the Rio de la Plata basin, Argentina (1999) Hydrobiologia, 416, pp. 41-49Žáková, Z., Kočková, E., Biomonitoring and assessment of heavy metal contamination of streams and reservoirs in the Dyje/Thaya river basin, Czech Republic (1999) Water Sci. Technol., 39 (12), pp. 225-232