Morbidity in a Juvenile Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) Due to Ocean-Borne Plastic

Stamper, M. Andrew; Spicer, Chad W.; Neiffer, Donald L.; Mathews, Kristin S.; Fleming, Gregory J.

doi:10.1638/2007-0101.1

Cited by 36 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…This may be the cause for the high ingestion selectivity seen in both pelagic and neritic turtles. Several studies have reported ingestion of balloons by sea turtles [11], [17], [52], [53], and anecdotal evidence exists for ingestion of balloons by whales and dolphins [54]. Worldwide cleanups sponsored by the Ocean Conservancy over the past 25 years have found over 1.2 million balloons, or about 0.7% of all debris items collected [55].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

To Eat or Not to Eat? Debris Selectivity by Marine Turtles

et al. 2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Marine debris is a growing problem for wildlife, and has been documented to affect more than 267 species worldwide. We investigated the prevalence of marine debris ingestion in 115 sea turtles stranded in Queensland between 2006–2011, and assessed how the ingestion rates differ between species (Eretmochelys imbricata vs. Chelonia mydas) and by turtle size class (smaller oceanic feeders vs. larger benthic feeders). Concurrently, we conducted 25 beach surveys to estimate the composition of the debris present in the marine environment. Based on this proxy measurement of debris availability, we modeled turtles’ debris preferences (color and type) using a resource selection function, a method traditionally used for habitat and food selection. We found no significant difference in the overall probability of ingesting debris between the two species studied, both of which have similar life histories. Curved carapace length, however, was inversely correlated with the probability of ingesting debris; 54.5% of pelagic sized turtles had ingested debris, whereas only 25% of benthic feeding turtles were found with debris in their gastrointestinal system. Benthic and pelagic sized turtles also exhibited different selectivity ratios for debris ingestion. Benthic phase turtles had a strong selectivity for soft, clear plastic, lending support to the hypothesis that sea turtles ingest debris because it resembles natural prey items such as jellyfish. Pelagic turtles were much less selective in their feeding, though they showed a trend towards selectivity for rubber items such as balloons. Most ingested items were plastic and were positively buoyant. This study highlights the need to address increasing amounts of plastic in the marine environment, and provides evidence for the disproportionate ingestion of balloons by marine turtles.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

To Eat or Not to Eat? Debris Selectivity by Marine Turtles

et al. 2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Due to natural curiosity, pinnipeds often become entangled in marine debris at a young age, which can constrict their body as they grow thus reducing quality of life (Allen et al 2012). Globally, at least 23 % of marine mammal species, 36 % of seabird species, and 86 % of sea turtle species are known to be affected by plastic debris (Stamper et al 2009). …”

Section: Effects Of Plastics On Marine Biodiversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Paraiba, Brazil, a turtle taken in for rehabilitation died after excreting 11 pieces of hard plastic and 9 pieces of plastic bag (Mascarenhas et al 2004). Similarly, a juvenile green sea turtle found minimally responsive, defecated over 74 foreign objects, including an array of different kinds of plastics while being rehabilitated (Stamper et al 2009). Prior to passing the debris, the turtle was consuming about 8 g of food per day.…”

Section: Sea Turtlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Plastic Pollution on Aquatic Wildlife: Current Situations and Future Solutions

Sigler

2014

Water Air Soil Pollut

177

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Gastrointestinal obstruction may lead to chronic debilitation and eventually death (105). Cases of 492 secondary infection and mortality are frequently reported due to plastic ingestion (104,106).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Disease Risk Analysis in sea turtles: A baseline study to inform conservation efforts

Mashkour

Jones

Hipolito

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

49The impact of a range of different threats has resulted in the listing of six out of seven sea turtle 50 species on the IUCN Red List of endangered species. Disease risk analysis (DRA) tools are designed to 51 provide objective, repeatable and documented assessment of the disease risks for a population and 52 measures to reduce these risks through management options. To the best of our knowledge, DRAs 53 have not previously been published for sea turtles, although disease is reported to contribute to sea 54 turtle population decline. Here, a comprehensive list of health hazards is provided for all seven 55 species of sea turtles. The possible risk these hazards pose to the health of sea turtles were assessed 56 and "One Health" aspects of interacting with sea turtles were also investigated. The risk assessment 57 was undertaken in collaboration with more than 30 experts in the field including veterinarians, 58 microbiologists, social scientists, epidemiologists and stakeholders, in the form of two international 59 workshops and one local workshop. The general finding of the DRA was the distinct lack of 60 knowledge regarding a link between the presence of pathogens and diseases manifestation in sea 61 turtles. A higher rate of disease in immunocompromised individuals was repeatedly reported and a 62 possible link between immunosuppression and environmental contaminants as a result of 63 anthropogenic influences was suggested. Society based conservation initiatives and as a result the 64 cultural and social aspect of interacting with sea turtles appeared to need more attention and 65 research. A risk management workshop was carried out to acquire the insights of local policy makers 66 about management options for the risks relevant to Queensland and the options were evaluated 67 considering their feasibility and effectiveness. The sea turtle DRA presented here, is a structured 68 guide for future risk assessments to be used in specific scenarios such as translocation and head-69 starting programs. 70 71 72 73 3 74 101 Species Survival Commission in 2014. The manual addresses different scenarios for endangered 102 species and translocating them for conservation purposes and enables the pros and cons of these 103actions to be thoroughly investigated (11). In order to accommodate the unique biology of sea 104 turtles, the DRA process as described in this manual requires certain modifications to realistically 105 articulate with situations such as translocating animals or investigating the risks of disease for a 106 population in its normal habitat. A 2015 study describes a systematic approach to investigate 107 disease-related population decline without confining the assessment to a particular scenario or 108 location (6). This method is a modified version of a DRA based on epidemiological principles (6) for 109 any declining wildlife population. A successful DRA considers the study population in the context of 110 the environment. 111In the 1960's, Calvin Schwabe coined the term "One Medicine" which then extended ...

show abstract

Morbidity in a Juvenile Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) Due to Ocean-Borne Plastic

Cited by 36 publications

References 6 publications

To Eat or Not to Eat? Debris Selectivity by Marine Turtles

To Eat or Not to Eat? Debris Selectivity by Marine Turtles

The Effects of Plastic Pollution on Aquatic Wildlife: Current Situations and Future Solutions

Disease Risk Analysis in sea turtles: A baseline study to inform conservation efforts

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About