2021
DOI: 10.1126/science.abh0945
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Plastic ingestion as an evolutionary trap: Toward a holistic understanding

Abstract: Human activities are changing our environment. Along with climate change and a widespread loss of biodiversity, plastic pollution now plays a predominant role in altering ecosystems globally. Here, we review the occurrence of plastic ingestion by wildlife through evolutionary and ecological lenses and address the fundamental question of why living organisms ingest plastic. We unify evolutionary, ecological, and cognitive approaches under the evolutionary trap theory and identify three main factors that may dri… Show more

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Cited by 251 publications
(99 citation statements)
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“…Environmental pollution is prevalent worldwide and has been highlighted as an issue of global concern in the modern society, of which plastic pollution [1][2][3][4] is one of the chief culprits. [5][6][7] Nowadays, some terms, such as microplastics and plastic rain, become diffusely known.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Environmental pollution is prevalent worldwide and has been highlighted as an issue of global concern in the modern society, of which plastic pollution [1][2][3][4] is one of the chief culprits. [5][6][7] Nowadays, some terms, such as microplastics and plastic rain, become diffusely known.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…However, bioaccumulation and biomagnification studies yield controversial results. While bioaccumulation within trophic levels seem to occur more commonly (Collard et al, 2017;Miller et al, 2020), and is possible through different pathways (Santos et al, 2021), the biomagnification across food webs remains to be confirmed (Miller et al, 2020). Hence, careful must be taken while analyzing results of biomagnification and trophic transfer, preferably using realistic contaminants concentrations as could be found in the wild (Miller et al, 2020;Savoca et al, 2021).…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Reports of debris ingestion by marine wildlife have long been known (Bjorndal et al, 1994;Robards et al, 1995). From invertebrates (Remy et al, 2015;Rotjan et al, 2019) to fishes (Rochman, 2013;Garnier et al, 2019;Macieira et al, 2021) and megafauna (Besseling et al, 2015;Santos et al, 2015;Germanov et al, 2018), varied groups and trophic levels are affected by the accumulation of man-made material in the marine environment (Farrell and Nelson, 2013;Gall and Thompson, 2015;Santos et al, 2021). Species' ecological traits and their interaction with debris may influence their susceptibility to ingestion of debris (Covernton et al, 2021;Salerno et al, 2021).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…The abundance, persistence, and ubiquity of plastic in seawaters have made this pollutant one of the most controversial topics in recent years, representing a serious threat to marine organisms. A wide range of animals can ingest plastic particles once they reach the sea (Cau et al 2019;Markic et al 2020;Capone et al 2020;Santos et al 2021), either intentionally -by mistaking plastic particles for natural prey, or accidentally -by ingesting items already consumed by their prey (Bergmann et al 2015). Most of the plastic seems to be accumulated on the sea oor in form of microplastics (MiP < 5mm), or macroplastics (MaP 25-1000 mm), or mesoplastics (MeP 5-25 mm) (GESAMP 2019) with very heterogeneous and complex patterns (Reisser et al 2015;Franceschini et al 2019;Tsiaras et al 2021).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…It is worth noting that there is a growing trend of evidence that marine plastics pollution contaminates key stocks for sheries, with potential negative consequences to human health, resources status, and socioeconomic sectors (Rochman et al 2015;Lusher et al 2017). Numerous studies have suggested also that plastics in the marine environment can adversely affect sharks (Anastasopoulou et The spread and potential impacts of plastic waste in the marine environment are a global emergency that is pushing the scienti c community to make a huge effort to understand and help stem these phenomena (Thompson et al 2009;GESAMP 2019;Santos et al 2021). As plastic is undergoing, even in the marine environment, a phenomenon of miniaturization and degradation that makes it increasingly less traceable (Chamas et al 2020), it is crucial to enhance the monitoring of macroplastics and their role in the process of environmental contamination.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%