“Microplastic ecology”: Testing the influence of ecological traits and urbanization in microplastic ingestion by sandy beach fauna

Costa, Leonardo Lopes; Costa, Igor David da; Oliveira, Ariane da Silva; Zalmon, Ilana Rosental

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108406

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 62 publications

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“…As an urban watershed, this region houses multiple residential, industrial, and commercial centers [42]. Findings from this study are not surprising as plastic ingestion in marine fauna has been well documented across multiple taxa, including bivalves [43][44][45], fish [46][47][48][49], and marine mammals (e.g., pinnipeds, [50][51][52]; mysticetes, [8,53,54]; odontocetes, [55][56][57]). Additionally, waters surrounding urban centers are generally more polluted than rural areas [58][59][60], thereby increasing exposure to plastic debris for aquatic animals that live in close proximity to urbanized areas [48,[61][62][63].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

Plastic, It’s What’s for Dinner: A Preliminary Comparison of Ingested Particles in Bottlenose Dolphins and Their Prey

Hart,

Dziobak,

Wells

et al. 2023

Oceans

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Microplastic ingestion was reported for common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) inhabiting Sarasota Bay, FL, USA, a community that also has prevalent exposure to plasticizers (i.e., phthalates) at concentrations higher than human reference populations. Exposure sources are currently unknown, but plastic-contaminated prey could be a vector. To explore the potential for trophic exposure, prey fish muscle and gastrointestinal tract (GIT) tissues and contents were screened for suspected microplastics, and particle properties (e.g., color, shape, surface texture) were compared with those observed in gastric samples from free-ranging dolphins. Twenty-nine fish across four species (hardhead catfish, Ariopsis felis; pigfish, Orthopristis chrysoptera; pinfish, Lagodon rhomboides; and Gulf toadfish, Opsanus beta) were collected from Sarasota Bay during September 2022. Overall, 97% of fish (n = 28) had suspected microplastics, and GIT abundance was higher than muscle. Fish and dolphin samples contained fibers and films; however, foams were common in dolphin samples and not observed in fish. Suspected tire wear particles (TWPs) were not in dolphin samples, but 23.1% and 32.0% of fish muscle and GIT samples, respectively, contained at least one suspected TWP. While some similarities in particles were shared between dolphins and fish, small sample sizes and incongruent findings for foams and TWPs suggest further investigation is warranted to understand trophic transfer potential.

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