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Microplastic contamination in coral reef fishes and its potential risks in the remote Xisha areas of the South China Sea
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Coral reef fish in remote ocean regions were found to contain microplastics across multiple species and trophic levels, with abundance increasing in higher-trophic species suggesting biomagnification. The study provides baseline data from understudied remote reef ecosystems and frames microplastic ingestion as a threat to reef fish biodiversity.
Microplastics are recognized as a newly emerging threat to marine organisms as they can be ingested and accumulated through multiple trophic levels. However, microplastic contamination and its potential risk assessment in coral reef fishes have been less addressed, particularly in remote ocean regions. In this study, microplastics in 167 samples of coral reef fish (a total of eighteen species) from the Xisha areas of the South China Sea were studied. There were fifteen species of coral reef fish contaminated by microplastics with an average occurrence rate of 29.3 %. The shape of microplastics in the fishes was mostly fibrous with small sizes (400-900 μm) and light colors (transparent and blue). The dominant types of microplastic polymers are polyamide and polyethylene terephthalate, accounting for 77 % and 11 % of microplastics in the fish body. There were generally more microplastics in the herbivorous fishes than the carnivorous ones. The highest microplastic abundance and occurrence was found in parrotfish due to its direct feeding on the microplastics-contaminated corals. In addition, there were much more microplastics in the gastrointestinal tracts than in the gills of the Xisha fishes. Microplastic abundance was found negatively correlated with the trophic level of the Xisha fishes supporting a stronger microplastic impact at lower levels of marine animals. Finally, a risk assessment using the polymer hazard index (PHI) revealed that microplastic contamination in the Xisha fishes was lower than those in the eutrophic coast. Our study provides new evidence for the widespread presence of microplastic contamination in the fishes of the remote Xisha coral reefs.
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Microplastics in the Coral Reef Systems from Xisha Islands of South China Sea
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Researchers surveyed microplastic distribution in seawater, fish, and corals across three atolls in the Xisha Islands of the South China Sea. They found microplastics present in all sample types, with lagoons showing the highest water concentrations and fibrous rayon and polyethylene being the dominant polymer types. The findings indicate that even relatively remote coral reef systems are contaminated with microplastics, which may threaten reef health.
Microplastics in remote coral reef environments of the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea: Source, accumulation and potential risk
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Scientists mapped microplastic contamination across 13 islands in the remote Xisha Islands of the South China Sea and found an average of 682 particles per kilogram of sediment. The study identified local sewage, fishing waste, and industrial runoff from nearby countries as the main sources. This shows that even remote coral reef ecosystems far from population centers are not safe from microplastic pollution.
Deposition characteristics of microplastics in coral reef fish with different feeding habits from the Xisha Islands Waters, South China Sea
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Researchers examined microplastic contamination in the gills and gastrointestinal tracts of 96 coral reef fish from the South China Sea, finding that nearly 98% of sampled fish contained microplastics. Fibers were the most common shape, with most particles smaller than 1 mm, and the predominant polymers were PET, PE, and PP. The study found that herbivorous fish had higher microplastic content than omnivorous or carnivorous species, likely because they feed primarily on microplastic-polluted coral reefs.
The spatial distribution of microplastic in the sands of a coral reef island in the South China Sea: Comparisons of the fringing reef and atoll
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The presence of microplastics in fishes of South Maldives
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Researchers found microplastics in the gut, gills, and flesh of two fish species collected from South Maldives, with 80% of one species containing plastic particles, indicating widespread ingestion by reef fish in this remote island nation and potential transfer into the human food chain.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.