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Microplastics ingestion and chemical pollutants in seabirds of Gran Canaria (Canary Islands, Spain)
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Gastrointestinal examination of 88 seabirds from 14 species on Gran Canaria revealed widespread plastic ingestion alongside elevated chemical pollutant levels in liver tissue. The study documents the co-occurrence of plastic ingestion and chemical contamination in Canary Island seabirds, where plastic pollution research has previously been limited.
Plastic pollution constitutes an environmental problem in the Canary Islands nowadays. Nevertheless, studies evaluating the impact of plastics on its avifauna are still scarce. Gastrointestinal tracts of 88 birds belonging to 14 species were studied for the presence of plastics. Moreover, their livers were analyzed for the determination of bromodiphenyl ethers (BDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). Among Cory's shearwaters (n = 45), the frequency of occurrence of plastic ingestion was considerably high (88.89 %). This species had the highest mean value of items (7.22 ± 5.66) and most of them were compatible with lines derived from fishing gear. PCBs and PAHs were detected in all of the samples and OCPs in the great majority of them (98.86 %). Our results highlight the problems that plastic debris (mainly for seabirds) and organic pollutants pose to these species.
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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.