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Occurrence of microplastics in the gastrointestinal tracts of four most consumed fish species in Giresun, the Southeastern Black Sea
Summary
Researchers examined four commonly eaten fish species from the Black Sea coast of Turkey and found microplastics in the digestive tracts of all four species. Bottom-dwelling fish had higher microplastic concentrations than surface-dwelling species, likely because microplastics settle and accumulate in sediments. Since these are popular commercial fish species, the findings underscore a direct route of microplastic exposure for seafood consumers in the region.
Microplastic studies investigating concentrations in water are numerous, but the majority of microplastics settle and are retained in sediment, and higher concentrations are regularly reported in sediments. Thus, MPs accumulation may be more threatening to benthic fish living in sediments than to pelagic fish. The presence, abundance and diversity of microplastics were investigated by collecting samples from two pelagic, European anchovy, and horse mackerel and two benthic fish species, red mullet, and whiting that are popularly consumed in Giresun province of Türkiye, located on the southern coast of the Black Sea. Visual classification and chemical compositions of microplastics was performed using a light microscope and ATR-FTIR spectrophotometry, consecutively. The overall incidence and mean microplastics abundance in sampled fishes were 17 and 1.7 ± 0.18 MP fish, respectively. MPs were within the range of 0.026-5 mm in size. In most of the cases, the MP was black in color with 41%. With the rates of 56%, polypropylene was the predominant polymer type. The most dominant MP type was identified as fiber followed by fragments and pellets. The relationship between MP amounts in fish and Fulton condition factor was not strong enough to establish a cause-effect relationship.