First record of microplastics ingestion by European hake MERLUCCIUS MERLUCCIUS from the Tyrrhenian Sicilian coast (Central Mediterranean Sea)

Abstract

A sample of 67 European hake Merluccius merluccius were examined to highlight the ingestion of microplastics in the Tyrrhenian Sea. In all samples, 31 black fibres were found in the stomach contents corresponding to 46.3% of the specimens. The data presented here could be important for the implementation of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive in Mediterranean waters.

Walleye Pollock Gadus chalcogrammus, a Species with Continuous Range from the Norwegian Sea to Korea, Japan, and California: New Records from the Siberian Arctic

“…comparative analysis of fossil records, modern distribution and variability of mtDNA genes (see e.g., [87]); -comparative analysis of the shape of otoliths (see e.g., [88,89]); -comparison of the chemical composition of otoliths (see e.g., [90]); -comparative analysis of the diet composition and feeding habits (see e.g., [91]), including evaluation of microplastic, macroplastic and other marine litter content in the stomach and its impact on the biological condition of fish (see e.g., [92][93][94]) since pollution of the Siberian Arctic in recent years become a serious ecological problem [95,96].…”

First evidence of in vitro cytotoxic effects of marine microlitter on Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus, two Mediterranean commercial fish species

“…Hake and mullet were chosen as experimental models for a variety of reasons: on one hand they are among the most targeted demersal fish species by the Mediterranean deep-sea fisheries and the two most fished target species in the shallow area of the coastal sector (Sabatella et al, 2017;Tiralongo et al, 2021); on the other, they are regarded as bioindicators in coastal marine ecosystems and display a benthic feeding behavior in part of (juvenile M. merluccius) or throughout their lifespan (M. barbatus) (Carrozzi et al, 2019;Esposito et al, 2014). Moreover, some authors already described the occurrence of MPs in these two species (Atamanalp et al, 2021;Avio et al, 2015;Bellas et al, 2016;Digka et al, 2018;Giani et al, 2019;Mancuso et al, 2019) and MPs were demonstrated to abound in superficial sediments in the study area (Piazzolla et al, 2020).…”

“…The European hake Merluccius merluccius (Linnaeus, 1758) and the red mullet Mullus barbatus (Linnaeus, 1758) are good experimental models in MPs-related research because of their biological features, commercial relevance, abundance in the Mediterranean region and suitability as small-scale plastic pollution bioindicators. Building on research that demonstrated the presence of MPs in their gastrointestinal tracts (Atamanalp et al, 2021; Avio et al, 2020, 2015; Bellas et al, 2016; Digka et al, 2018; Giani et al, 2019; Mancuso et al, 2019), in the present study we hypothesized that microlitter could be retrieved from the marine environment and ingested by fish, and that it could affect the in vitro viability of immunologically-relevant cells. We therefore investigated the litter abundance in the coastal sector of Civitavecchia (Northern Tyrrhenian Sea, Latium, Italy) at the sea surface and in the stomachs of M. merluccius and M. barbatus .…”

The Influence of Polystyrene Microspheres Abundance on Development and Feeding Behavior of Artemia salina (Linnaeus, 1758)

“…The primary or secondary ingestions of MPs by the principal taxa of aquatic organisms has been confirmed by several field studies, in gelatinous plankton [11][12][13], mollusks [14][15][16], crustaceans [17,18], bone fish [19][20][21], cartilaginous fish [22][23][24], reptiles [25,26], seabirds [27,28], cetaceans [29][30][31], and other aquatic organisms. Many of the 2 of 17 organisms in which contamination was detected, are also commercial interest species destined for human consumption, captured [32][33][34] or farmed [35][36][37], bringing this pollution to a relevant level of consumers interest.…”