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Microplastic ingestion in fish larvae in the western English Channel
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This study found that fish larvae in the western English Channel had ingested microplastics, including fibers and fragments, at early life stages. Because larvae are critical for recruitment success, even sub-lethal plastic exposure during this window could have population-level consequences for commercially important fish species.
Microplastics have been documented in marine environments worldwide, where they pose a potential risk to biota. Environmental interactions between microplastics and lower trophic organisms are poorly understood. Coastal shelf seas are rich in productivity but also experience high levels of microplastic pollution. In these habitats, fish have an important ecological and economic role. In their early life stages, planktonic fish larvae are vulnerable to pollution, environmental stress and predation. Here we assess the occurrence of microplastic ingestion in wild fish larvae. Fish larvae and water samples were taken across three sites (10, 19 and 35 km from shore) in the western English Channel from April to June 2016. We identified 2.9% of fish larvae (n = 347) had ingested microplastics, of which 66% were blue fibres; ingested microfibers closely resembled those identified within water samples. With distance from the coast, larval fish density increased significantly (P < 0.05), while waterborne microplastic concentrations (P < 0.01) and incidence of ingestion decreased. This study provides baseline ecological data illustrating the correlation between waterborne microplastics and the incidence of ingestion in fish larvae.
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This study examined microplastic occurrence in benthic and epibenthic invertebrates from the Western English Channel, finding that habitat type, feeding mode, and trophic level all influenced microplastic ingestion rates. The results suggest that bottom-dwelling filter feeders and deposit feeders are among the most exposed organisms in seafloor food webs.
Microplastic contamination of coral reef fish larvae of the Great Barrier Reef: baseline data and influences of oceanographic and ecological features
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This study found microplastic contamination in coral reef fish larvae from the Great Barrier Reef, where larval fish are uniquely vulnerable because microplastics overlap in size with their natural zooplankton prey and are concentrated by the same oceanographic processes. Ingestion of microplastics by larvae could impair early development and recruitment to reef fish populations.
Are fish larvae contaminated before they start eating? First evidence of microplastic contamination in the yolk-sac of wild fish larvae
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Researchers investigated microplastic contamination in wild fish larvae of two species — European sardine and common goby — from the Douro Estuary in Portugal, examining whether contamination begins before active feeding commences. They found microplastics present even in yolk-sac stage larvae that rely entirely on endogenous feeding, providing the first evidence that larval fish are contaminated before they begin eating.
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