I have attached screenshots of my Twitter thread looking at how Northern Fulmar birds are negatively impacted by microplastics in the ocean. This thread discusses how these birds commonly ingest these small plastics, and how it impacts the birds physiologically, such as endocrine disruption. There are so many ways to reduce our use of single-use plastic, and I’m hoping that this thread will bring about more awareness to this issue!
All photos are from the references listed below or CreativeCommons.
References
Costa M, Ivar do Sul J (2013) The Present and Future of Microplastic Pollution in the Marine Environment. El Sevier, Environmental Pollution, 185: 352-364.
Galloway T, Lewis C (2016) Marine Microplastics Spell Big Problems for Future Generations. PNAS, 113 (9): 2331-2333
Herzke D et al. (2016) Negligible Impact of Ingested Microplastics on Tissue Concentrations of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Northern Fulmars off Coastal Norway. Environmental Science & Technology, 50 (4): 1924-1933.
Law KL, Thompson RC (2014) Microplastics in the Seas. Science, 345 (6193): 144-145.
Obbard R et al. (2014) Global Warming Releases Microplastic Legacy Frozen in Arctic Sea Ice. Earth’s Future, 2 (6): 315-320.