Sharks Contaminated with Plastic

Composition of polymer make up of fibres between shark species. N of polymers identified in each species annotated on figure. (a) small-spotted catshark. (b) starry smooth-hound. (c) Spiny dogfish. (d) bull huss. (e) Total polymer percentages for all four species. Other = Biological materials and/or low spectral match scores. Elasmobranch drawings by Lucie Jones.

The ocean is filled with microplastics so it is no surprise that marine animals, including sharks, are ingesting them. A new study by researchers at the University of Exeter investigated microplastics in four species of demersal sharks (species living near or on the seafloor) in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean. When the researchers examined the stomachs and digestive tracts of 46 sharks, they found 67% contained microplastics. In all, they found 379 microplastics, plastic particles or fibers smaller than five millimetres, or a fifth of an inch, in the sampled sharks. The larger the shark, the more plastic was in it. Many of the plastic fibers were synthetic cellulose, the material found in polyester clothing and products such as face masks. The study demonstrates how pervasive plastic pollution has become in the marine environment.

Parton KJ, Godley BJ, Santillo D, Tausif M, Omeyer LCM, Galloway TS. (2020) Investigating the presence of microplastics in demersal sharks of the North-East Atlantic. Sci Rep 10(1):12204. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-68680-1.