Microplastics in three typical benthic species from the Arctic: Occurrence, characteristics, sources, and environmental implications

12 Pág. Centro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal (CISA) Microplastics (MPs) in the Arctic have raised increasing concern, but knowledge on MP contamination in benthic organisms from Arctic shelf regions, e.g., the Chukchi Sea is still limited. Therefore, the present study investigated the occurrenc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental Research
Main Authors: Fang, Chao, Zheng, Ronghui, Hong, Fukun, Jiang, Yulu, Chen, Jincan, Lin, Heshan, Lin, Longshan, Lei, Ruibo, Bailey, Christyn, Bo, Jun
Other Authors: Third Institute of Oceanography (China), Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration, National Key Research and Development Program (China), National Natural Science Foundation of China, Swiss National Science Foundation
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Academic Press 2020
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Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/289058
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.110326
https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85092909555
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Summary:12 Pág. Centro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal (CISA) Microplastics (MPs) in the Arctic have raised increasing concern, but knowledge on MP contamination in benthic organisms from Arctic shelf regions, e.g., the Chukchi Sea is still limited. Therefore, the present study investigated the occurrence, characteristics, sources, and environmental implications of MPs in the three most common benthic species, namely sea anemone (Actiniidae und.), deposit-feeding starfish (Ctenodiscus crispatus), and snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio), from the Chukchi Sea. The abundances of MPs in the three benthic species were significantly greater than those from the Bering Sea, but lower than those from other regions globally. The top three compositions of MPs in the three species were polyester, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate. The detection limit for MP size in the present study was 0.03 mm and the mean size of MP in the three species was 0.89 ± 0.06 mm. The surfaces of MPs found in the starfish and crabs were covered with many attachments, cracks, and hollows, while the surfaces of MPs found in the sea anemones were smooth, which was likely a consequence of different feeding behaviors. There was a significantly positive correlation between the abundances of MPs and other anthropogenic substances. The mean MP abundances in the sea anemones ranged from 0.2 items/individual to 1.7 items/individual, which was significantly higher than that in the deposit-feeding starfish (0.1-1.4 items/individual) and snow crabs (0.0-0.6 items/individual). Sea anemones inhabiting lower latitudes ingested relatively higher levels of MPs than those inhabiting higher latitudes. The MP abundances in the sea anemones are significantly and positively correlated with the seasonal reduced ratio of sea ice coverage from August to September. Our findings indicate that sea anemones could function as a bioindicator of MP pollution, and that the MPs in the benthos from the Chukchi Sea might originate from the melting sea ice, fishery activities and ocean ...