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Daphnia magna's Favorite Snack: Biofouled Plastics
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Researchers investigated how biofouling affects Daphnia magna ingestion rates of microplastics from wastewater effluent and fresh surface water. They found that D. magna consumed significantly more biofouled microplastics than virgin microplastics, with the effect seven times greater for surface-water biofilm versus a twofold increase for effluent biofilm, suggesting biofouling substantially increases plastic uptake by freshwater zooplankton.
The influence of biofouling on zooplankton ingestion rates of plastics in freshwater environments has received limited attention. We investigated how biofouling of microplastics in wastewater effluent and in fresh surface water influences Daphnia magna's microplastic consumption. The differences in ingestion of the biofouled as compared with the virgin microplastics were higher for the surface water by a factor of seven compared with a factor of two for the effluent. The intake of biofouled microplastics by D. magna was higher compared with virgin plastics, but the reason for this preference should be further investigated. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:1977-1981. © 2022 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.
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Microplastic ingestion by Daphnia magna and its enhancement on algal growth
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Researchers examined microplastic ingestion by the freshwater zooplankton Daphnia magna and its downstream effects on algal growth, finding that the organisms readily ingested microparticles. The study also observed that microplastic exposure indirectly enhanced algal growth, possibly by reducing grazing pressure, suggesting that plastic pollution could alter freshwater food web dynamics.
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Experiments with Daphnia magna showed that clean microplastics reduced survival and reproduction through food dilution at high concentrations, while biofouled microplastics had a slight positive biofilm carrier effect, with the net outcome depending on the balance between these competing mechanisms.
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This study investigated how food availability and water flow affect microplastic ingestion by Daphnia magna, finding that hydrodynamic conditions and food presence significantly influenced the rate at which these zooplankton took up microplastic particles.
Accumulation Kinetics and Gut Microenvironment Responses to Environmentally Relevant Doses of Micro/Nanoplastics by Zooplankton Daphnia Magna
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This study tracked how tiny zooplankton (Daphnia magna) accumulate micro and nanoplastics of different sizes and surface charges at environmentally realistic concentrations. The organisms readily consumed all particle types, with larger and positively charged plastics accumulating the most, and the particles disrupted their gut microbiome. Since zooplankton are a key food source for fish, this accumulation could transfer microplastics up the food chain toward humans.
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Researchers tested whether marine zooplankton prefer microplastics that have been aged in seawater over pristine ones, hypothesizing that biofilm formation makes particles more attractive. They found that several copepod species and life stages did indeed ingest aged microplastic beads at higher rates than new ones. The study suggests that natural biofilm coating on ocean microplastics may make them resemble food, increasing the likelihood that marine organisms will consume them.
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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.