Journal
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
Volume 136, Issue -, Pages 50-54Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.08.065
Keywords
Microplastics; Environmental monitoring; Scats; Pinnipeds; Microfibres
Funding
- Rufford Small Grant Foundation [N 18815-1]
- Morris Animal Foundation fellowship [N D16ZO-413]
- Vicerrectoria de Investigacion y Postgrado, Universidad Santo Tomas, through the Concurso Interno de Proyectos de Investigacion y Creacion [UST 2015-2016/23]
- CONICYT-FONDECYT [11150548, 1161504, N 11160019]
- CONICYT-PIA [REDI170292, REDI170403]
- INACH [RT1217]
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The dramatic increase of microplastics (plastic fragments < 5 mm) in marine environments is a problem that has attracted public attention globally. Within the different types of microplastics, microfibres are the least studied (size < 1 mm). We examined 51 female scats from a population in Northern Patagonia. Our results showed no presence of microplastic particles, however 67% of them showed a remarkable abundance of microfibers, which until now had only been reported in animals fed in captivity. As a result of this work we propose that the examination of scats from South American Fur Seal and also other pinnipeds could be an efficient tool to monitor environmental levels of microfibres and maybe microplastics in the environment due to the easy recognition of the animals and their scats.
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