Garbage accumulation around terrestrial nature reserves poses a risk to many species. We monitored animal visitation patterns and foraging behaviour at garbage dumps near a forested area in Uttarakhand Himalaya, India, to examine plastic consumption by animals. We recorded 32 species of birds and mammals visiting garbage dumps and classified them as 'peckers', 'handlers' and 'gulpers' based on their foraging behaviour. Gulpers (carnivores and ruminants) were observed feeding more frequently and spent longer durations (3.8  0.2 min) at garbage dumps. Our results highlight the importance of at-source segregation of waste to prevent wild and domestic animals from ingesting hazardous wastes, including plastics at garbage dumps.

No abstract

Impacts of plastic pollution, recognized as a driver of change in the global environment, have been under reported in terrestrial fauna. In this study, we looked at presence of plastic in the diet of Asian elephant and other megaherbivores in the forest habitats of Haridwar and Lansdowne, Uttarakhand state, India. We collected dung and pellet samples from forest edges and forest interiors and quantified plastic particles and other anthropogenic waste present. Each anthropogenic waste item was measured, weighed and sub-categorized into the type of plastic or other categories. Thirty-two percent of the elephant dung samples showed presence of plastic and other waste. Plastic particles comprised of 85% of the waste recovered from the dung with 100% occurrence in elephant dung samples (mean mean 47.08, SE 12.85 particles per sample). We found twice as many plastic particles (mean 85.27, SE 33.7 per 100g of dung samples) in forest samples as compared to forest edge samples (mean 35.34, SE 11.14 plastic particles/100g of dung samples). Other non-biodegradable anthropogenic waste recovered from elephant dung (glass, metal, rubber bands, clay pottery and tile pieces) was found to be much higher for forest samples (mean 34.79, SE 28.41 items/100g sample) as compared to forest edge samples (mean 9.44, SE 1.91 items/100g). This study is the first systematic documentation of occurrence of non-biodegradable waste in the diet of Asian elephants. Dominance of plastic compared to other non-biodegradable material in elephant dung samples highlights its widespread use and poor waste segregation practices. We recommend developing a comprehensive solid waste management strategy to mitigate the threat of plastic pollution around these critical elephant habitats.