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Sardines in hot water: Unravelling plastic fibre ingestion and feeding behaviour effects
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A captive experiment demonstrated that European sardines ingest plastic fibers from water, with filter-feeding individuals ingesting significantly more fibers (mean 4.95 per fish) than particulate-feeding individuals (mean 0.6 per fish), though the decrease in body condition was primarily linked to reduced food intake rather than fiber ingestion itself. The study suggests that plastic fiber pollution and phytoplankton community changes under climate change may synergistically threaten sardine population health in the wild.
Small pelagics are small fish species often schooling that mainly feed on planktonic organisms and are foraging species of larger animals. These species have experienced important declines in their wild populations during the last decades. For instance, the decrease of the European sardine (Sardina pilchardus) body condition has had a detrimental impact on its landings, leaving their commercial fishing unprofitable in some Mediterranean areas. The causes for this decline are not clearly established but seems to be mainly related to changes with planktonic communities inducing a switch in their foraging behaviour from particulate-feeding to filter-feeding. Moreover, it has been highlighted that sardines ingest plastic fibres throughout their natural spatial distribution, suggesting this additional pollution as a possible new threat affecting their populations' health. In this study we developped an experimental setup allowing us to maintain wild fish in captive controlled conditions in order to test the possible factors affecting plastic fibres ingestion in sardines. We demonstrate that sardines ingest fibres from water, and the amount of fibres ingested is highly impacted by their feeding behaviour. Sardines feeding by filtration ingest less food but more plastic fibres (mean = 4.95 fibres/ind; SD = 3.43), compared to sardines that feed by particulate-feeding (mean = 0.6 fibres/ind; SD = 1.04). Moreover, a decrease in sardine body condition factor was detected for filter-feeding individuals, mostly linked to the lower amount of food they ingested rather than to the fibre ingestion itself. Nonetheless, higher water temperature seems to accelerate the pattern of fibre expulsion in filter-feeding sardines. Alltogether, it is suggested that plastic fibres pollution and phytoplanctonic changes under global change, might synergistically act at disturbing the health of this species in wild populations.
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Ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in Sardina pilchardus (Walbaum, 1792) and Engraulis encrasicolus (Linnaeus, 1758) along the Spanish Mediterranean coast
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Microplastics and natural fibers were found in the digestive tracts of European sardines and anchovies collected from 14 stations along the Spanish Mediterranean coast, with microplastics present in about 15% of individuals. The study documents widespread but variable microplastic ingestion in two commercially important small pelagic fish species that are key components of Mediterranean food webs and human diets.
Susceptibility of Sardinella lemuru to emerging marine microplastic pollution
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Researchers examined the susceptibility of Sardinella lemuru (Bali sardinella) to microplastic ingestion by analyzing stomach contents of 600 sardines harvested in Northern Mindanao, Philippines, using visual microscopy, Rose Bengal staining, and hot needle testing to identify ingested microplastic particles.
Assessing the seasonal uptake of micro-litter by round sardinella (Sardinella aurita Valenciennes, 1847) and its potential health impact in the NW Mediterranean Sea
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Sardines caught off the coast of Barcelona were found to contain tiny bits of litter, mostly fabric fibers, with the amount changing by season, highest in winter when the fish feed more actively, and lowest in summer. The good news: even fish with the most litter in their guts showed no signs of tissue damage from it, though since these small fish are often eaten whole, this research helps scientists better understand how microplastics move through the food chain and toward our plates.
Occurrence of Microplastic-like Particles in Opisthonema libertate and Sardinops sagax from the Gulf of California: Seasonal Patterns, Morphophysiological Responses, and Fisheries Management Implications
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Scientists found tiny plastic fibers (likely from fishing gear) building up in the guts of two common sardine species in Mexico's Gulf of California — and in one species, more plastic exposure was linked to lower fat/energy reserves, suggesting it could take a metabolic toll. Since these small fish are a major food source for larger fish, marine animals, and people, this buildup of plastic in the food chain raises concerns worth watching, though more research is needed to confirm exactly what these particles are and how they might affect human health.
Marine litter in stomach content of small pelagic fishes from the Adriatic Sea: sardines (Sardina pilchardus) and anchovies (Engraulis encrasicolus)
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Researchers examined marine litter and microplastics in the stomach contents of sardines (Sardina pilchardus) and anchovies (Engraulis encrasicolus) from the Adriatic Sea across seasons in 2013-2014, finding marine litter in over 90% of samples from both species. Ingestion levels were correlated with species, season, and fish biometry, underscoring the widespread contamination of small pelagic fish at the base of Mediterranean food webs.
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