Uncovering the sub-lethal impacts of plastic ingestion by shearwaters using fatty acid analysis

Puskic, Peter S.; Lavers, Jennifer L.; Adams, Louise R.; Grünenwald, Martin; Hutton, I.; Bond, Alexander L.

doi:10.1093/conphys/coz017

Cited by 20 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 48 publications

(72 reference statements)

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“…To date, studies of the effect of plastic debris on wildlife have been largely confined to quantifying plastic burden (e.g., Provencher, et al 53 ), or relating that burden to gross measures of body condition, such as mass or chick size (e.g., Lavers, Bond and Hutton 6 ). Though these studies remain important, increasingly, the potential for sublethal impacts on birds' physiology is of concern 54 , including the presence of toxic chemicals 6,15,55 , harmful microbiota 56,57 , and the ubiquity of small particles which can be distributed throughout the digestive tract 21,58 . Such relationships have been recently described in marine invertebrates and fish 59,60 , but few data exist for seabirds.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To date, studies of the effect of plastic debris on wildlife have been largely confined to quantifying plastic burden (e.g., Provencher et al) or relating that burden to gross measures of body condition, such as mass or chick size (e.g., Lavers, Bond, and Hutton). Though these studies remain important, increasingly, the potential for sublethal impacts on birds’ physiology is of concern, including the presence of toxic chemicals, ,, harmful microbiota, , and the ubiquity of small particles which can be distributed throughout the digestive tract. , Such relationships have been recently described in marine invertebrates and fish, , but few data exist for seabirds. This is concerning as birds can compensate for physiological impairments caused by disease or other stressors meaning they can appear healthy for a period of time, which can be misleading when undertaking visual assessments of health and condition or using superficial measures, such as body size.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Clinical Pathology of Plastic Ingestion in Marine Birds and Relationships with Blood Chemistry

Lavers

Hutton

Bond

2019

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Pollution of the environment with plastic debris is a significant and rapidly expanding threat to biodiversity due to its abundance, durability, and persistence. Current knowledge of the negative effects of debris on wildlife is largely based on consequences that are readily observed, such as entanglement or starvation. Many interactions with debris, however, result in less visible and poorly documented sub-lethal effects, and as a consequence, the true impact of plastic is underestimated. We investigated the sub-lethal effects of ingested plastic in Flesh-footed Shearwaters (Ardenna carneipes) using blood chemistry parameters as a measure of bird health. The presence of plastic had a significant negative effect on bird morphometrics and blood calcium levels, and a positive relationship with the concentration of uric acid, cholesterol, and amylase. That we found blood chemistry parameters to be related to plastic pollution is one of few examples to date of the sublethal effects of marine debris and highlights that superficially healthy individuals may still experience the negative consequences of ingesting plastic debris. Moving beyond crude measures, such as reduced body mass, to physiological parameters will provide much needed insight into the nuanced and less visible effects of plastic. TABLE OF CONTENTS GRAPHIC

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Clinical Pathology of Plastic Ingestion in Marine Birds and Relationships with Blood Chemistry

Lavers

Hutton

Bond

2019

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…80-90 days old) and followed the recommended protocol for quantifying plastic in seabird necropsies (van Franeker, 2004). Ingested plastic items including micro-plastic (>1 µm; Barnes et al, 2009) and visible macro-plastic (> 5mm diameter; Provencher et al, 2017), from the proventriculus and gizzard were categorised by type and colour following Provencher et al (2017), with a minor modification to the colour categories in order to be consistent with a longterm monitoring study of Australian Procellariiformes (Lavers and Bond, 2016b;Puskic et al, 2019). Plastic items were dried and weighed to the nearest 0.001 g using an electronic balance.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ingested plastic and trace element concentrations in Short-tailed Shearwaters (Ardenna tenuirostris)

Puskic

Lavers

Adams

et al. 2020

Marine Pollution Bulletin

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Pollution of marine environments is concerning for complex trophic systems. Two anthropogenic stresses associated with marine pollution are the introduction of marine plastic and their associated chemicals (e.g., trace elements) which, when ingested, may cause harm to wildlife. Here we explore the relationship between plastic ingestion and trace element burden in the breast muscle of Shorttailed Shearwaters (Ardenna tenuirostris). We found no relationship between the amount of plastic ingested and trace element concentration in the birds' tissues. Though the mass and number of plastic items ingested by birds during 1969 -2017 did not change significantly, trace element concentrations of some elements (Cu, Zn, As, Rb, Sr and Cd), appeared to have increased in birds sampled in 2017 compared to limited data from prior studies. We encourage policy which considers the data gleaned from this sentinel species to monitor the anthropogenic alteration of the marine environment.

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“…The authors found associations between ingested plastic and morphometrics and blood calcium (significant, declining trends with more ingested plastic) as well as uric acid, cholesterol, and amylase production (increasing levels with more ingested plastic), and concluded analysis of physiological parameters is critical to better understanding the sublethal impact of plastic debris. Puskic et al (2019) took a similar approach and investigated potential sublethal impacts to Flesh‐footed ( Ardenna tenuirostris and Short‐tailed Shearwaters ( A. carneipes ), focusing on fatty acid analysis for the connection to energy usage; while the study did not find a relationship between fatty acids and ingested plastic, it furthered the concept of investigating sublethal impacts.…”

Section: Effects Of Microplastic Debrismentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of pollution on marine organisms

Mearns

Morrison

Arthur³

et al. 2020

Water Environment Research

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This review covers selected 2019 articles on the biological effects of pollutants, including human physical disturbances, on marine and estuarine plants, animals, ecosystems, and habitats. The review, based largely on journal articles, covers field, and laboratory measurement activities (bioaccumulation of contaminants, field assessment surveys, toxicity testing, and biomarkers) as well as pollution issues of current interest including endocrine disrupters, emerging contaminants, wastewater discharges, marine debris, dredging, and disposal. Special emphasis is placed on effects of oil spills and marine debris due largely to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil blowout in the Gulf of Mexico and proliferation of data on the assimilation and effects of marine debris microparticulates. Several topical areas reviewed in the past (e.g., mass mortalities ocean acidification) were dropped this year. The focus of this review is on effects, not on pollutant sources, chemistry, fate, or transport. There is considerable overlap across subject areas (e.g., some bioaccumulation data may be appeared in other topical categories such as effects of wastewater discharges, or biomarker studies appearing in oil toxicity literature). Therefore, we strongly urge readers to use keyword searching of the text and references to locate related but distributed information. Although nearly 400 papers are cited, these now represent a fraction of the literature on these subjects. Use this review mainly as a starting point. And please consult the original papers before citing them.

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Uncovering the sub-lethal impacts of plastic ingestion by shearwaters using fatty acid analysis

Cited by 20 publications

References 48 publications

Clinical Pathology of Plastic Ingestion in Marine Birds and Relationships with Blood Chemistry

Clinical Pathology of Plastic Ingestion in Marine Birds and Relationships with Blood Chemistry

Ingested plastic and trace element concentrations in Short-tailed Shearwaters (Ardenna tenuirostris)

Effects of pollution on marine organisms

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