Redacció Ciencia, 4 Jul. (EFE).- The Mediterranean and the Black Sea are the areas of the planet where seabirds are most exposed to plastic waste, with the Mediterranean and Balearic bald eagles heading the list of species potentially threatened by the ingestion of this material.
Among the most dangerous areas for birds are also the Northwest and Northeast Pacific, the South Atlantic and the Southwest Indian Ocean, according to a study involving more than 200 researchers and published today in Nature Communications.
Seabirds are one of the most threatened groups globally, with around a third of species classified as “vulnerable”, “endangered” or “critically endangered” on the International Union’s Red List for Nature Conservation.
The study delves into the growing threat to marine life from ocean plastic pollution, which analyzed data from 77 species of seabirds, more than 7000 individuals and 1.7 million positions recorded by devices remote monitoring.
The study focused on petrels and baldridges, one of the most threatened groups of birds on the planet and distributed throughout all seas, so they are excellent indicators of the state of conservation of the marine environment.
This is the first time that tracking data from so many seabird species has been combined and overlaid on global maps of the distribution of plastics in the oceans, to see where there is the most overlap and therefore the most risk of interaction.
The researchers, led by Bethany Clak of BirdLife International, thus identified the areas where birds are most exposed to plastic waste, and which species and populations are most affected.
The data indicate that the Mediterranean and the Black Sea “stand out as areas of greatest risk identified by the study”, highlights Seo BirdLife in a statement.
This implies that the species specific to this basin are the most exposed to the problem of plastics, with the Mediterranean (Puffinus yelkouan) and Balearic (P. mauretanicus) puffins in the lead, both threatened at a global level (Vulnerable and Critically Endangered, respectively) .
The results show the relevance of the plastic problem “for species of our direct competition, especially the endemic Balearic bald eagle”, says Pep Arcos, coordinator of the SEO/BirdLife Marine Program and one of the co-authors of the article.
“So far we know that there is a high incidence of plastics in the three species of baldrics native to the Mediterranean, but in view of the results of this article – he adds – we must intensify our efforts to understand their real impact” .
The results show that plastic pollution threatens marine life on a scale that transcends national borders, as a quarter of all plastic exposure risk occurs on the high seas, highlights the University of Cambridge (UK) , one of the participants in the study.
Most species are at greater risk of encountering plastic in waters far from their breeding jurisdiction and in international waters.
“This means that international cooperation is essential to solve this problem, imposing dialogue between various actors and increasing the complexity of the answers”, emphasizes the coordinator of the study, Maria Dias, from the University of Lisbon.
Ocean currents cause large eddies of plastic trash to accumulate far from land, out of sight and beyond the jurisdiction of any country, the University of Cambridge notes.
Seabirds often mistake small fragments of plastic for food, or ingest what has already been eaten by prey. This material may also contain toxic chemicals harmful to seabirds.
Petrels are particularly vulnerable because they cannot easily regurgitate plastic and in the breeding season, they often feed plastic to their chicks without realizing it.
The study also shows that species that are already in danger of extinction (due to the introduction of invasive alien species to the islands where they breed, bycatch or climate change) are also the most exposed to plastic.
So, “if the plastic problem continues to worsen, the already fragile state of these species could worsen even more”, adds Dias.
The results can now be interpreted and used as a tool for the management and conservation of the marine environment by countries around the world.
Spanish entities also participated in the study, including the University of Barcelona; the Center for Advanced Studies of Blanes (CEAB-CSIC); the Biodiversity Research Initiative of the Balearic Islands (IRBI) and the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies, Imedea. EFE