We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Microplastics in guano of three Peruvian guano seabird species at Punta Coles, Humboldt Current System
AI summary Read the abstract
Microplastics were found in the feces of 80.6% of samples from three Peruvian guano seabird species, with polyester (PET) fibers dominating at 58% of particles. The contamination of guano birds — whose droppings are an economically important fertilizer — signals how pervasive microplastic ingestion is in Humboldt Current marine food webs.
Microplastics (MPs) are increasingly reported in seabird feces, but fecal deposits of Peruvian guano birds remain unexplored. We quantified MPs in feces of three guano-producing seabirds (Sula variegata, Phalacrocorax bougainvillii, Pelecanus thagus) at Punta Coles, a guano headland within the Reserva Nacional Sistema de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras (RNSIIPG), Peru. Fecal samples from 67 sampling points were processed by density separation (NaCl, ~1.2 g cm), Fenton oxidation, stereomicroscopy and μ-Raman spectroscopy. MPs were detected in 80.6% of samples (n = 54 particles), with median abundance 0.20 items g dw (mean 0.16 ± 0.08) and no significant differences between habitat zones (Wild vs. Direct-use; Mann-Whitney U = 534.5, p = 0.985) or among species (Kruskal-Wallis H = 0.772, p = 0.680). Assemblages were dominated by filaments (66.7%), with fragments (29.6%) as secondary contributors and microbeads rare (3.7%). Polyester (PET, 58.0%) was the main polymer, followed by polyamide (PA, 20.0%) and polypropylene (PP, 8.0%); blue and white/grey were the most frequent colours. μ-Raman spectroscopy confirmed 92.6% of analysed particles (50/54). Multivariate analyses (PCA, NMDS, MFA, PERMANOVA) and co-occurrence networks revealed a homogeneous PET-PA-PP filament-dominated assemblage with no detectable compositional differences between zones or species (all R ≤ 0.16, p > 0.05). Effect sizes were small (r ≤ 0.18, η ≈ 0), and the detection limit (~40 μm) excluded smaller MPs and nanoplastics. Fecal surveys offer a practical, non-lethal approach to monitor seabird-mediated fluxes of MPs in the Humboldt Current system, with potential applications for long-term surveillance within Peru's marine protected area network.
More Papers Like This
Microplastics in Seabird Feces from Coastal Areas of Central Chile
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers analyzed fecal samples from Dominican gulls, Magellanic penguins, and Humboldt penguins in coastal Chile for microplastic content, finding microplastics in all three species. The results document microplastic ingestion by multiple seabird species in Chilean coastal ecosystems, reflecting ocean contamination in the southeastern Pacific.
Garbage in guano? Microplastic debris found in faecal precursors of seabirds known to ingest plastics
AI summary Read the abstract
Microplastics including fibers and fragments were detected in faecal precursors (pellets) from seabirds known to ingest plastics, providing non-lethal evidence of plastic ingestion that could be used in monitoring programs. The method offers a practical way to assess plastic ingestion in protected seabird species without requiring destructive sampling.
Monitoring the occurrence of microplastic ingestion in Otariids along the Peruvian and Chilean coasts
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers monitored microplastic ingestion in four pinniped species across five sites along the Peruvian and Chilean coasts by analyzing 205 scat samples, finding that 68% contained microplastic fragments or fibers — predominantly blue-colored — and that 81.5% were confirmed anthropogenic in origin.
Microplastics and other anthropogenic particles in Antarctica: Using penguins as biological samplers
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers used penguin fecal samples collected from three species across the Antarctic Peninsula over seven breeding seasons to assess microplastic ingestion in these seabirds. Finding microplastics in Antarctic penguin feces confirms that plastic pollution has reached even remote polar food webs, with krill serving as a potential pathway for transferring microplastics to penguins.
Seabird Transfer of Marine Microplastic Fibers to Terrestrial Soils Via the Accumulation of Guano at Palmyra Atoll, Northern Line Islands, Central Pacific Ocean
AI summary Read the abstract
Red-footed Boobies at Palmyra Atoll were found to transfer marine microplastic fibers to terrestrial soils through their guano, completing a two-vector ocean-to-land transport pathway. This documents a previously unrecognized mechanism by which seabirds act as biological vectors spreading marine microplastic contamination into remote island ecosystems far from human activity.
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.