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Ingestion of microplastics by pelagic fish from the Moroccan Central Atlantic coast

Environmental Pollution 2020 62 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 40 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Hind Maaghloud, Hind Maaghloud, Hind Maaghloud, Hind Maaghloud, Hind Maaghloud, Hind Maaghloud, Rachida Houssa, Rachida Houssa, Rachida Houssa, Soukaina Ouansafi, Fatima Bellali, Soukaina Ouansafi, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Fatima Bellali, Abdelilah Fahde Soukaina Ouansafi, Soukaina Ouansafi, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Karima El Bouqdaoui, Abdelilah Fahde, Najib Charouki, Rachida Houssa, Najib Charouki, Abdelilah Fahde Abdelilah Fahde, Abdelilah Fahde, Abdelilah Fahde

Summary

Researchers found microplastics in the stomachs of three small pelagic fish species caught along the Moroccan Central Atlantic coast, confirming plastic ingestion in commercially important species in a region where marine litter is predominantly plastic. The study adds to growing evidence of microplastic contamination in North African Atlantic fisheries.

Polymers

PA PC PS

Body Systems

Digestive

As in the rest of the world, plastics are the most dominant marine litter category in Moroccan Atlantic waters. This work aims to identify the presence of microplastics in the stomach contents of three small pelagic species of the Central zone of the Atlantic, located between Cape Cantin (33°N) and Cape Boujdor (26°N): Scomber spp., Truchurus truchurus and Sardina pilchardus; Also, to map the spatial distribution of the investigated species. A total of 251 individuals were examined, composed by 118 Scomber spp, 82 Sardina pilchardus and 51 Trachurus trachurus. The characterization of microplastics ingested by those species was identified by FTIR. The results showed the presence of three polymers: Polyamide (PA), Acrylic (PC) and Polystyrene (PS), in 26% of the individuals studied. The presence of polymers was accumulated in Atlantic horse mackerel (Truchurus truchurus) with 30%, then in mackerels (Scomber spp.) with 27%, and European pilchardus (Sardina pilchardus) (9%). Fish containing microplastics in their stomachs are concentrated, mainly in the northern part of the study area. This zone has significant artisanal fishing activity and large rivers that can be source of microplastics.

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