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Diet Spectrum and Microplastic Presence in the Gut Contents of Invasive Guppy, Poecilia reticulata (Peters, 1859), in the Southern Western Ghats, India
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Scientists studying invasive guppy fish in a protected Indian forest reserve found tiny plastic fibers (microplastics) in their stomachs alongside their normal diet of insect larvae and algae. This matters because it shows plastic pollution has reached even remote, protected wilderness areas and is entering the food chain at a basic level—small fish eating plastic can pass it up to bigger fish, birds, and eventually onto our plates if we eat freshwater fish from contaminated waters.
The guppy Poecilia reticulata (Peters, 1859), native to South America, is now an established invasive species in the ecologically sensitive Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot in India, yet its invasion biology in the region remains poorly understood. This study examines the dietary habits of invasive guppy populations in the Bonacaud Forest Range of the Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary, southern Western Ghats, India. A total of 130 individuals (38 males, 92 females; 10–37.6 mm in total length) were analysed. Their diet was dominated by midge fly larvae (34.18 %) and algae (32.15 %), followed by miscellaneous items including fibres, sand, and mud (11.95 %). Insect remains (Hemiptera, Coleoptera) accounted for 9.09 % of the diet, with smaller contributions from detritus (5.94 %), zooplankton (2.49 %), nereid larvae (2.03 %), fish remains (1.74 %), and arachnids (0.43 %). Frequency-of-occurrence analysis similarly identified Chironomidae larvae (27.53 %) and algae (25.87 %) as the most common food items. Feeding intensity assessments indicated that none of the fish had empty stomachs; most showed moderate (29 %) or good (28 %) fullness, with additional full (15 %), poor (17 %), and gorged (11 %) conditions. Larger individuals exhibited greater consumption, supported by gastrosomatic index values. Microplastics - primarily polyamide (PA) and polyethylene (PE) fibres - were detected in the gut, with a mean abundance of 1.03 ± 0.42 items per fish, and scanning electron microscopy confirmed evidence of microplastic degradation. These findings underscore the need for further research to evaluate the ecological impacts of invasive guppy populations on freshwater biodiversity in the Western Ghats across spatial and temporal scales.
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