We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Is there biologically-facilitated transfer of billions to trillions of microplastics between oceans in the tissues of the European anchovy?
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists found that tiny anchovies swimming from the South Atlantic to the Indian Ocean carry microplastics in their muscle tissue, and as the fish grow and change their eating habits during migration, they may transport a staggering 460 billion to 2.8 trillion plastic particles between oceans. Since these anchovies are commonly eaten by humans and other fish, this suggests microplastics could be spreading between ocean ecosystems through fish bodies in ways scientists hadn't previously considered, a reminder that the plastic in our seafood may have traveled farther than we realize.
There is a paucity of comparative microplastic (MP) data in fish between adjacent oceans. We analysed MPs in muscle tissue of the European anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus from the South Atlantic Ocean (SAO) and Indian Ocean (IO) off the South African coast (n = 58 and n = 45, respectively). SAO anchovy had a significantly higher MP concentration than IO anchovy (1.4 and 0.58 n/g, respectively), with no discernible differences between oceans in MP dimensions or colour compositional proportions. SAO anchovy were younger, smaller (6.5 g), and filter feeding. Migrating toward the IO, they grow larger (7.2 g) and switch to selective feeding, partially accounting for lower MP concentrations. Due to this ontogenetic diet shift, anchovy may not be the best indicator of oceanic concentrations of MPs without accounting for their biology. Based on this ontogenetic diet shift and knowledge of stocks and movement, we estimate that between 460 billion to 2.8 trillion MPs (equivalent to 20.6 – 223 kg) could be transported within the tissues of the anchovy from the SAO to the IO. Our findings underscore the need to incorporate biology when interpreting biota as MP indicators. This study highlights a possible and previously unrecognised biologically-facilitated transport of MPs between oceans, a phenomenon requiring further study for confirmation.
More Papers Like This
May Mesopelagic Fishes Play an Important Role as Vector of Microplastics Across the Mediterranean Trophic Web? A Case of Study in the Strait of Messina
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers examine whether mesopelagic fish in the Strait of Messina act as vectors transferring ingested microplastics up the Mediterranean food web, finding that plastic ingestion by these deep-water species could play a significant role in contaminating higher trophic levels.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.