Papers

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Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Seabird Feces from Coastal Areas of Central Chile

Researchers analyzed fecal samples from Dominican gulls, Magellanic penguins, and Humboldt penguins in coastal Chile for microplastic content, finding microplastics in all three species. The results document microplastic ingestion by multiple seabird species in Chilean coastal ecosystems, reflecting ocean contamination in the southeastern Pacific.

2023 Animals 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and other anthropogenic particles in Antarctica: Using penguins as biological samplers

Researchers analyzed stomach contents of three Antarctic penguin species for microplastics and other anthropogenic particles, finding MPs in all three species and suggesting that penguins could serve as biological samplers to track plastic pollution trends in remote polar waters.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 123 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in gentoo penguins from the Antarctic region

Microplastic particles were found in the digestive tracts of gentoo penguins sampled from the Antarctic region, adding to evidence that even the remote Southern Ocean ecosystem is contaminated with plastic pollution. The study raises concerns about how microplastic ingestion may affect the health and foraging efficiency of Antarctic seabirds.

2019 Scientific Reports 262 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution in Penguins from Antarctic Peninsula

Researchers investigated microplastic pollution in penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula, examining the presence and characteristics of plastic particles in these seabirds as indicators of contamination in one of the most remote marine ecosystems on Earth.

2025 Portuguese National Funding Agency for Science, Research and Technology (RCAAP Project by FCT)
Article Tier 2

Characterization of plastic ingestion in urban gull chicks and its implications for their use as pollution sentinels in coastal cities

Researchers examined the stomach contents of 56 yellow-legged gull chicks in Barcelona and found microplastics in 100% of the birds, with larger plastic pieces in about 20%. The chicks ingested plastics from their urban coastal environment, mostly fragments and fibers from common consumer plastics. This study shows how urban wildlife can serve as indicators of plastic pollution levels and highlights the widespread contamination of coastal food webs that humans also depend on.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in gastrointestinal tracts of gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) chicks on King George Island, Antarctica

Researchers found an average of 27 microplastics per individual in the stomach and upper intestines of 14 dead gentoo penguin chicks on King George Island, Antarctica, with 378 microplastics total identified by FTIR spectroscopy. The number of microplastics did not increase with chick body mass, suggesting no long-term accumulation, likely because penguins regurgitate indigestible items.

2023 Scientific Reports 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Floating macro- and microplastics around the Southern Ocean: Results from the Antarctic Circumnavigation Expedition

Researchers surveyed floating macro- and microplastic pollution around the Southern Ocean islands, providing baseline abundance estimates for high southern latitudes. The data reveal that plastic contamination extends even to remote polar regions, with seabirds in the area confirmed to have been ingesting plastics since at least the 1960s.

2020 Environment International 266 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic ingestion in seabirds of the western Indian Ocean

Researchers examined stomach contents of 222 seabirds from nine species in the western Indian Ocean and found plastic in all species, with tropical shearwaters (79%) and Barau's petrels (59%) most affected, and juvenile birds carrying significantly greater plastic mass than adults, indicating regional ocean plastic pollution and age-dependent exposure risks.

2019 Marine Pollution Bulletin 71 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic study reveals the presence of natural and synthetic fibres in the diet of King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) foraging from South Georgia

Analysis of King Penguin diet using scat-based molecular methods confirmed the presence of both natural and synthetic fibers in penguin digestive systems, suggesting penguins foraging around South Georgia are exposed to microfiber pollution. The study raises concerns about how even remote sub-Antarctic wildlife are affected by microplastic contamination from distant sources.

2019 Environment International 185 citations
Article Tier 2

Differential impact of marine debris ingestion during ontogenetic dietary shift of green turtles in Uruguayan waters

Researchers analyzed gut contents of 96 stranded green turtles from Uruguay and found debris in 70% of individuals, with hard plastics most abundant by weight; smaller (juvenile) turtles had significantly more debris ingestion, identifying the early juvenile life stage as particularly vulnerable to plastic pollution in the southwestern Atlantic.

2017 Marine Pollution Bulletin 48 citations
Article Tier 2

Interspecific variability in plastic ingested by Procellariiformes off the Uruguayan coast.

This study assessed plastic ingestion in albatrosses and petrels caught as fishing bycatch in the Southwest Atlantic, finding significant species differences — with petrels ingesting plastic far more frequently than albatrosses. Larger species tended to ingest larger plastic items, and findings indicate these seabirds encounter persistent plastic pollution throughout the southern oceans.

2023 Marine pollution bulletin
Article Tier 2

Plastic ingestion by seabirds in New Caledonia, South Pacific

Researchers examined stomach contents of 90 seabirds from 12 species in New Caledonia and found plastic debris in 14.4% of individuals, with the highest rates in procellariids (petrels and shearwaters), providing the first plastic ingestion baseline for this Pacific island region.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 20 citations
Article Tier 2

The hidden cost of following currents: Microplastic ingestion in a planktivorous seabird

Researchers documented microplastic ingestion in Mediterranean storm petrels, finding that these planktivorous seabirds ingest microplastics while foraging in pelagic areas where plastic debris accumulates alongside their planktonic prey in ocean currents.

2022 Marine Pollution Bulletin 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Garbage Dump Use, Mortality, and Microplastic Exposure of Raptors in Ushuaia, Tierra Del Fuego Province, Southern Argentina

Raptors near a garbage dump in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina were found to have microplastics in their gastrointestinal tracts, linking dump use to microplastic ingestion and raising concerns about exposure effects in these birds.

2021 Journal of Raptor Research 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in patagonian marine mammals: where do they come from and what is their fate once ingested?

Researchers investigated the sources and fate of microplastics ingested by Patagonian marine mammals, examining tissue distribution and accumulation pathways to understand how these particles move through the bodies of apex predators in southern ocean ecosystems.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Antarctic penguins and seals in Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica

Analysis of fresh scats from penguins and seals at King George Island, Antarctica found microplastics in approximately 30% of samples, including fibers and fragments of polyester and polypropylene, confirming microplastic ingestion by top predators in one of Earth's most remote ecosystems.

2025 Arctic Antarctic and Alpine Research 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure to microplastics by pelagic and coastal seabirds from temperate and tropical environments

Researchers examined microplastic exposure in pelagic and coastal seabird species from temperate and tropical marine environments, using the birds' broad spatial distribution and feeding behavior to assess microplastic distribution and concentration patterns across oceanic regions.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in faeces of European shags Gulosus aristotelis in central Norway

Researchers analyzed microplastics in 36 fecal samples from European shag chicks in central Norway to quantify egested microplastics using a non-lethal sampling method. Microplastics were detected in the majority of samples, dominated by fibers, confirming that seabirds in Norwegian coastal waters are routinely ingesting plastic debris.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and organic pollutants in stranded northern gannet (Morus bassanus) from Southern Spain

Researchers conducted the first comprehensive assessment of plastic ingestion and organic pollutant exposure in northern gannets stranded along the southern Spanish coast. The study found that 88% of the 42 birds examined had ingested plastics, with microplastics dominating the debris, and transparent fibers being the most common type, alongside measurable levels of persistent organic pollutants in muscle tissue.

2026 Environmental Research
Article Tier 2

Do microplastics accumulate in penguin internal organs? Evidence from Svenner island, Antarctica

Scientists examined the internal organs of Adelie penguins from Antarctica and found microplastics in their digestive systems, muscles, and other tissues, the first comprehensive study of microplastic accumulation in penguin organs. The most common plastics found were polyester, polyethylene, and polypropylene, likely ingested through contaminated prey. This finding shows that microplastic pollution has reached even the most remote ecosystems and is building up inside top predators.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Size and dynamics of microplastic in gastrointestinal tracts of Northern Fulmars ( Fulmarus glacialis ) and Sooty Shearwaters ( Ardenna grisea )

Researchers examined microplastic in the gastrointestinal tracts of 143 Northern Fulmars and 25 Sooty Shearwaters stranded on Oregon and Washington beaches, finding plastic in 89.5% and 64% of birds respectively, with larger particles concentrated in the stomach's upper chamber and no significant reduction in plastic load in birds held in a plastic-free rehabilitation environment for up to seven days.

2017 Marine Pollution Bulletin 116 citations
Article Tier 2

Monitoring the occurrence of microplastic ingestion in Otariids along the Peruvian and Chilean coasts

Researchers monitored microplastic ingestion in four pinniped species across five sites along the Peruvian and Chilean coasts by analyzing 205 scat samples, finding that 68% contained microplastic fragments or fibers — predominantly blue-colored — and that 81.5% were confirmed anthropogenic in origin.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 81 citations
Article Tier 2

Mortality of a juvenile Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus, Spheniscidae) associated with the ingestion of a PFF-2 protective mask during the Covid-19 pandemic

Researchers reported the first documented case of a marine animal — a juvenile Magellanic penguin found dead on a Brazilian beach — killed by ingesting a discarded PFF-2 face mask, highlighting the underappreciated risk that COVID-19 macro-plastic waste poses to coastal wildlife beyond microplastic contamination.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 92 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in marine mammals stranded around the British coast: ubiquitous but transitory?

Researchers examined whole digestive tracts of 50 stranded marine mammals from 10 UK species and found microplastics in every animal (mean 5.5 particles). The low numbers and predominance in stomachs versus intestines suggest particles are largely transitory rather than accumulating permanently in marine mammal guts.

2025 Figshare