MTI writes that the plastic chemical components found in the bodies of more than half of seabirds have been investigated by an international research team.
Eighteen universities and research institutes in Japan and six other countries studied the tail gland secretions of 145 individuals from 32 species of seabirds at sixteen different sites around the world. Various plastic additives were found in 76 individuals, that is, in 52 percent of the samples examined. The scientists announced their findings in the scientific journal Environmental Monitoring and Contaminants Research.
The additives found in the birds included two flame retardants and six stabilizers that prevent UV rays from damaging the plastic. These additives are found in striped emergency birds (Calonectris leucomelas) on the island of Awashima, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.Ethea Busella) on St. Lawrence Island in Alaska and Blue Stormbird in the Bering Sea (helopina kyrolia) on Marion Island, South Africa. Chemicals have been found in donkey penguins (Papua Pegosilis) in the Kerguelen Islands in the southern Indian Ocean. A UV stabilizer called UV328 has been found in the Galapagos Islands, among other things
Plastic has also been detected in some birds, such as the Hawaiian stormbird (Pterodroma sandwichensisThe red-footed emergency bird of Western AustraliaWe wanted Carnebies) in stomach. In both cases, high concentrations of the additive were also found in animals.
Experts estimate that 30 percent of birds have accumulated chemicals in their bodies through direct consumption of plastic, while the rest are presumed to have ingested them indirectly with their food.
“The world’s seabirds are increasingly ingesting plastic. There is an urgent need to switch to less toxic additives that do not accumulate in the organism,” said Takada Hedesig, a professor at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, as an independent expert on the study.
(Phys.org)
