Ingestion and transfer of microplastics in the planktonic food web.
Experiments were carried out with different Baltic Sea zooplankton taxa to scan their potential to ingest plastics. Mysid shrimps, copepods, cladocerans, rotifers, polychaete larvae and ciliates were exposed to 10 μm fluorescent polystyrene microspheres. These experiments showed ingestion of microspheres in all taxa studied. The highest percentage of individuals with ingested spheres was found in pelagic polychaete larvae, Marenzelleria spp. Experiments with the copepod Eurytemora affinis and the mysid shrimp Neomysis integer showed egestion of microspheres within 12 h. Food web transfer experiments were done by offering zooplankton labelled with ingested microspheres to mysid shrimps. Microscopy observations of mysid intestine showed the presence of zooplankton prey and microspheres after 3 h incubation. This study shows for the first time the potential of plastic microparticle transfer via planktonic organisms from one trophic level (mesozooplankton) to a higher level (macrozooplankton). The impacts of plastic transfer and possible accumulation in the food web need further investigations.
Finnish Environment Institute, Marine Research Center, P.O. Box 140, FI-00251 Helsinki, Finland. Electronic address: outi.setala@ymparisto.fi.
Outi
O
Setälä
Finnish Environment Institute, Marine Research Center, P.O. Box 140, FI-00251 Helsinki, Finland.
Vivi
V
Fleming-Lehtinen
Finnish Environment Institute, Marine Research Center, P.O. Box 140, FI-00251 Helsinki, Finland.
Maiju
M
Lehtiniemi
D000818:Animals; D001454:Baltic States; D016798:Ciliophora / Q000737:chemistry; D033342:Copepoda / Q000737:chemistry; D003445:Crustacea / Q000737:chemistry; D004435:Eating; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D020387:Food Chain; D007814:Larva; D010933:Plankton / Q000737:chemistry; D010969:Plastics / Q000032:analysis*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D015048:Zooplankton / Q000737:chemistry
D010969:Plastics; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
Microplastic litter; Planktonic food web; Trophic transfer; Zooplankton