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Plastic ingestion in Scopoli's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea) from Lampedusa (Italy), central Mediterranean Sea
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Scientists studying seabirds in the Mediterranean found that nearly every bird they examined had swallowed plastic, with young female birds carrying surprisingly high amounts. This matters because these seabirds eat the same fish that end up on our dinner plates, meaning the plastic pollution choking marine life is part of the same ocean food web humans rely on for seafood.
Plastic pollution is an escalating threat to marine biodiversity. Seabirds are widely recognized as effective indicators of ocean health. The amount of plastic in Scopoli’s shearwaters (Calonectris diomedea), a wide-ranging seabird that breeds throughout the Mediterranean, one of the world’s most plastic-polluted seas, is not well-known. In this study, we analyzed the stomach contents of bycaught Scopoli’s shearwaters collected by local fishers near Lampedusa Island, in the central Mediterranean Sea. A total of 18 carcasses were dissected using a standardized protocol adapted from the seabird plastic monitoring program in the North Sea. Biometric data and additional information such as organ condition, sex, and sexual maturity were recorded for each individual. The contents of both the proventriculus and gizzard were rinsed, sorted, and analyzed by plastic shape, number, and mass. We identified 243 plastic items across all specimens with an average mass (± SE) of 23.1 ± 7.09 mg per bird, with marked differences between stomach sections and sexes. Interestingly, immature/subadult females (n = 4) exhibited higher plastic burdens than adult males (n = 14), although the highest plastic mass was found in a male (129 mg). On average, plastic mass in the gizzard was 19.8± 7.18 mg, compared to 3.3 ± 1.76 mg in the proventriculus. Future analysis of polymer composition using FTIR will offer deeper insight into the origin and characteristics of the ingested plastics, contributing to a better understanding of marine litter impacts on Mediterranean seabirds.
More Papers Like This
Plastic ingestion in Scopoli's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea) from Lampedusa (Italy), central Mediterranean Sea
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists found plastic in the stomachs of every single Scopoli's shearwater (a Mediterranean seabird) they examined, with some birds carrying over 100 milligrams of plastic waste. This matters because these seabirds feed on the same fish and seafood that end up on our plates, so widespread ocean plastic pollution ultimately works its way up the food chain toward humans too.
Marine debris in the digestive tract of a trans-hemispheric migratory pelagic seabird wintering in Argentine waters
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Scientists examined the stomachs of 30 seabirds (Great Shearwaters) that washed up on the Argentine coast and found every single one had plastic inside—averaging about 14 pieces per bird, mostly small fragments from everyday plastic products. This shows just how deeply plastic pollution has infiltrated ocean food webs, which matters for us too since these same waters supply seafood, and the fish these birds eat are part of the same ecosystem humans rely on for food.
Plastic ingestion in seabirds of the western Indian Ocean
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Researchers examined stomach contents of 222 seabirds from nine species in the western Indian Ocean and found plastic in all species, with tropical shearwaters (79%) and Barau's petrels (59%) most affected, and juvenile birds carrying significantly greater plastic mass than adults, indicating regional ocean plastic pollution and age-dependent exposure risks.
Plastic ingestion by Cory's and Scopoli's shearwaters (Calonectris spp.) from the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
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This study documented plastic ingestion in 529 individuals of two Calonectris shearwater species (C. borealis and C. diomedea) from the northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean, finding higher plastic loads in Mediterranean birds and fledglings compared to post-fledglings. The authors proposed a mass-based threshold monitoring system, suggesting thresholds of 0.0098 g for fledglings and 0.0041 g for post-fledglings, under which 40–88% of birds depending on location exceeded the threshold, advocating this approach over particle-count methods.
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Researchers documented microplastic ingestion in Mediterranean storm petrels, finding that these planktivorous seabirds ingest microplastics while foraging in pelagic areas where plastic debris accumulates alongside their planktonic prey in ocean currents.
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