The little pieces plastic They are nearly ubiquitous, even in places as remote as Antarctica or the deepest parts of the oceans, and scientists have also discovered them throughout the human body, as well as in many species at sea and on land.
Dolphins are now added to the list bees with the discovery of microplastics in their bodies, which threatens both these two beings and humanity, which in the case of bees depends on a large percentage of them for their nutrition.
Microplastics have been found in dolphins’ breath, suggesting that the animals may be exposed to potentially harmful particles through inhalation.
Researchers at the College of Charleston in South Carolina collected exhaled breath samples from five bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota Bay, Florida, and six bottlenose dolphins in Barataria Bay, Louisiana. .
They found that all 11 dolphins had at least one suspected microplastic particle in their breath. Further analysis revealed that they included fibers and fragments and included several types of plastic molecules, including polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyester, polyamide, polybutylene terephthalate and poly(methyl methacrylate), also known as PMMA. The discovery of microplastics in dolphins’ exhaled air highlights how widespread environmental microplastic pollution is.
“Not only did we find that many of the dolphins were exposed to these chemicals, but their levels were higher than those found in humans,” said researchers who publish their findings in the journal PLOS ONE.
The bees
At the same time, an international research team announced that they had detected microplastics in the stomachs of bees. Plastic pollution in bees could have important consequences for global food production. Nanoplastics and microplastics, which are incredibly small pieces of plastic that break down over time, can damage the organs of winged insects and hinder their critical role as pollinators.
Bees play an essential role in plant production, working to transfer pollen grains from the male part of one flower to the female part of another flower. Although pollen is a source of protein and other nutrients for bees, the fertilized flower can then produce fruits and seeds, which contain the genetic information needed to produce new plants.
People trust bees more than many people think. Without pollinators, the human race and Earth’s terrestrial ecosystems would not survive. One in three servings of food that people eat depends on pollinators, and worldwide, nearly 80% of cultivated plants used to produce food and other plant products require pollination by animals.
“We find microplastics in bee guts and see how wild bees use plastic to build nests. Therefore, we urgently need to investigate how this interacts with other stressors, such as climate change, for bees and their pollination services,” said Dr. Alexandra Maria-Klein, professor at the German University of Freiburg.
Naftemporiki.gr