Centre for Energy and Environment, Environmental Research Institute, North Highland College UHI, University of the Highlands and Islands, Ormlie Road, Thurso, KW14 7EE, Scotland, United Kingdom.
Centre for Energy and Environment, Environmental Research Institute, North Highland College UHI, University of the Highlands and Islands, Ormlie Road, Thurso, KW14 7EE, Scotland, United Kingdom; Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Akeman Street, Tring, Hertfordshire, HP23 6AP, United Kingdom; Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Battery Point, Tasmania, 7004, Australia.
Environ Pollut. 2019 Dec;255(Pt 1):113152. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113152. Epub 2019 Sep 6.
Anthropogenic marine debris is a recognised global issue, which can impact a wide range of organisms. This has led to a rise in research focused on plastic ingestion, but quantitative data on entanglement are still limited, especially regarding seabirds, due to challenges associated with monitoring entanglement in the marine environment. However, for seabird species that build substantial surface nests there is the opportunity to monitor nest incorporation of debris that individuals collect as nesting material. Here, we monitored nest incorporation of anthropogenic marine debris by Northern Gannets (Morus bassanus) from 29 colonies across the species' range to determine a) the frequency of occurrence of incorporated debris and b) whether the Northern Gannet is a suitable indicator species for monitoring anthropogenic debris in the marine environment within their range. Using data obtained from visual observations, digital photography and published literature, we recorded incorporated debris in 46% of 7280 Northern Gannet nests, from all but one of 29 colonies monitored. Significant spatial variation was observed in the frequency of occurrence of debris incorporated into nests among colonies, partly attributed to when the colony was established and local fishing intensity. Threadlike plastics, most likely from fishing activities, was most frequently recorded in nests, being present in 45% of 5842 nests, in colonies where debris type was identified. Comparisons with local beach debris indicate a preference for threadlike plastics by Northern Gannets. Recording debris in gannet nests provides an efficient and non-invasive method for monitoring the effectiveness of actions introduced to reduce debris pollution from fishing activities in the marine environment.
人为海洋垃圾是一个公认的全球性问题，它会对广泛的生物产生影响。这导致了人们对塑料摄入的研究增加，但关于缠绕的定量数据仍然有限，尤其是关于海鸟的，因为在海洋环境中监测缠绕存在挑战。然而，对于那些建造大量表面巢穴的海鸟物种来说，有机会监测个体作为筑巢材料收集的垃圾在巢中的纳入情况。在这里，我们监测了北大西洋海雀（Morus bassanus）巢穴中人为海洋垃圾的纳入情况，这些海雀来自该物种分布范围内的 29 个繁殖地，目的是确定：a）纳入的垃圾的出现频率；b）北大西洋海雀是否是监测其分布范围内海洋环境中人为垃圾的合适指示物种。我们利用从视觉观察、数字摄影和已发表文献中获得的数据，记录了 29 个监测繁殖地中除一个外的所有繁殖地的 7280 个北大西洋海雀巢穴中的纳入垃圾，发现有 46%的巢穴纳入了垃圾。在繁殖地之间，巢穴中纳入垃圾的频率存在显著的空间变化，部分原因是繁殖地的建立时间和当地捕鱼强度。在被识别出垃圾类型的繁殖地中，最常记录到的是来自捕鱼活动的线状塑料，存在于 45%的 5842 个巢穴中。与当地海滩垃圾的比较表明，北大西洋海雀更喜欢线状塑料。在海雀巢中记录垃圾为监测在海洋环境中减少捕鱼活动产生的垃圾污染的措施的有效性提供了一种高效且非侵入性的方法。
