[en] Dead leaves of the Neptune grass, Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile, in the Mediterranean coastal zone, are colonized by an abundant “detritivorous” invertebrate community that is heavily predated by fishes. This community was sampled in August 2011, November 2011 and March 2012 at two different sites in the Calvi Bay (Corsica). Ingested artificial fibers (AFs) of various sizes and colors were found in 27.6% of the digestive tracts of the nine dominant species regardless of their trophic level or taxon. No seasonal, spatial, size or species-specific significant differences were revealed; suggesting that invertebrates ingest AFs at constant rates. Results showed that, in the gut contents of invertebrates, varying by trophic level, and across trophic levels, the overall ingestion of AFs was low (approximately 1 fiber per organism). Raman spectroscopy revealed that the ingested AFs were composed of viscose, an artificial, cellulose-based polymer. Most of these AFs also appeared to have been colored by industrial dyes. Two dyes were identified: Direct Blue 22 and Direct Red 28. The latter is known for being carcinogenic for vertebrates, potentially causing environmental problems for the P. oceanica litter community. Techniques such as Raman spectroscopy are necessary to investigate the particles composition, instead of relying on fragment size or color to identify the particles ingested by animals.
Research center :
MARE - Centre Interfacultaire de Recherches en Océanologie - ULiège
Disciplines :
Aquatic sciences & oceanology
Author, co-author :
Remy, François ✱; Université de Liège > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution > Océanologie
Collard, France ✱; Université de Liège > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution > Morphologie fonctionnelle et évolutive
Gilbert, Bernard ; Université de Liège > Département de chimie (sciences) > Département de chimie (sciences)
Compère, Philippe ; Université de Liège > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution
Eppe, Gauthier ; Université de Liège > Département de chimie (sciences) > Chimie analytique inorganique
Lepoint, Gilles ; Université de Liège > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution > Océanologie
✱ These authors have contributed equally to this work.
Language :
English
Title :
When microplastic is not plastic: the ingestion of artificial cellulose fibers by macrofauna living in seagrass macro-phytodetritus.
Publication date :
2015
Journal title :
Environmental Science and Technology
ISSN :
0013-936X
eISSN :
1520-5851
Publisher :
American Chemical Society, Washington, United States - District of Columbia
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