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Museum foraminifera archive historical marine plastic pollution
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Agglutinated foraminifera from museum collections dating back to 1911 were found to incorporate plastic-derived polymers detectable by pyrolysis-GC-MS, with elevated concentrations in post-1950 specimens reflecting the rise of mass plastic production. This establishes historical foraminifera as novel bioarchives capable of reconstructing a century-long timeline of marine plastic pollution.
Historical marine plastic pollution records are valuable but scarce. We show that agglutinated foraminifera that incorporate sediment into their tests can serve as bioarchives of plastic pollution. Using pyrolysis–GC–MS with matrix-matched calibration, we quantified plastic-derived polymers in historical specimens (1911–1952) across oceans, with elevated concentrations detected in post-1950 samples. Our results demonstrate the potential of historical foraminifera for tracking and reconstructing long-term marine pollution.
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Researchers used benthic foraminifera from sediment cores in the Gulf of Mexico to reconstruct the temporal and spatial dynamics of microplastic accumulation since plastic production began. The study found that microplastic concentrations in sediment records reflected the historical increase in global plastic production over recent decades.
Review of microplastics in museum specimens: An under-utilized tool to better understand the Plasticene
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A review of microplastic studies using museum collection specimens spanning 1900-2019 found that archived marine and freshwater organisms can fill knowledge gaps on historical microplastic pollution trends, with microfibers as the most common type found across all specimen types reviewed.
Can a Sediment Core Reveal the Plastic Age? Microplastic Preservation in a Coastal Sedimentary Record
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Researchers used a sediment core from the NW Mediterranean Sea combined with state-of-the-art microplastic identification methods to reconstruct the historical record of microplastic pollution down to 11 micrometers in size. The core revealed a clear acceleration in microplastic burial rates since the 1960s and provided evidence that some polymer types are preserved well in sediment.
Can natural history collection specimens be used as aquatic microplastic pollution bioindicators?
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Researchers explored whether preserved animal specimens from natural history museum collections could serve as historical records of microplastic pollution over time. By reviewing how such collections have been used to track other pollutants, they identified key challenges — including inconsistent sampling and specimen degradation — and proposed guidelines for using museum archives to reconstruct how microplastic contamination has changed over decades.
Monitoring the evolution of deep-sea microplastic pollution in the Indo-Pacific using natural history collection holothurian specimens
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Researchers used preserved holothurian (sea cucumber) specimens from natural history collections spanning decades to monitor the temporal evolution of deep-sea microplastic pollution in the Indo-Pacific, providing a rare historical record of how microplastic ingestion by benthic organisms has changed since plastic production began in the 1950s.
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