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Does the mouth size influence microplastic ingestion in fishes?
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Researchers examined microplastic contamination in six tropical fish species with different mouth sizes from Saint Martin's Island in the Bay of Bengal. The study found that mouth size did influence microplastic ingestion rates, with larger-mouthed species generally accumulating more particles, suggesting that feeding morphology plays a role in microplastic uptake.
This study investigated microplastic (MP) contamination in six tropical fish species of different mouth sizes and trophic levels from Saint Martin's Island, Bay of Bengal. A total of 309 microplastics (MPs) were extracted from the gastrointestinal tract (GT) of these selected fishes, where the presence of MPs was 100 %. The mean abundance of MPs was significantly varied among the species and ranged from 4.38 to 10 MPs/GT (p < 0.05). This study revealed that MP incidence was strongly correlated with the mouth-to-body ratio of the selected fishes (r = 0.424, p = 0.003) and trophic levels (r = 0.458, p = 0.002). Results suggest that fish with larger mouths are more likely to ingest MPs, intentionally or unintentionally, compared to those with smaller mouths.
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