| Summary: | Plastic pollution is a severe global problem and every year approximately 368 million tons of plastic is produced. Both terrestrial and marine environments are impacted and hundreds of species affected. Marine plastic debris accounts for a weight of 268 940 tons and affects hundreds of marine species through habitat degradation, entanglement and ingestion. Microplastics (MPs) are a type of plastic which have gained traction during the last few decades and are defined as plastic particles with a diameter of 1 μm to 500 μm. They can be of either a primary or secondary nature and come in a wide range of shapes and sizes e.g. fibres, fragments and spheres. Their potential harmful effects if ingested by organisms is not yet fully understood. However, it is known that their biochemical qualities enable them to bind to chemicals which can have harmful effects if ingested, for example endocrine disruptive effects. This study investigated the digestive tract contents of five ringed seals ( Pusa hispida ) from the Baltic Sea, in order to both see if they contained any MPs and to develop an efficient method for detecting MPs. In total, 202 MPs were discovered whereof 143 were fibres and 59 were fragments. The method of using a solution of 30% hydrogen peroxide to dissolve the biogenic matter in the digestive tract contents was successful. Additionally, the study also identified several adjustments which need to be made to the method and gained new knowledge regarding the contamination risk, which needs to be taken into consideration for similar future studies. The fact that MPs were detected in all samples indicates that MPs are a widespread problem and shows the need for further research regarding their potential effects. What do you have in common with seals? Did you know that you eat approximately five grams of plastic every week? Yes? No? Either way, don’t you wonder what that plastic might do to you when it is inside your body? Will it damage your stomach or maybe react with important cells? We might not know ...
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