RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Low plastic ingestion rate in Atlantic Cod (<em>Gadus morhua</em>) from Newfoundland destined for human consumption collected through citizen science methods
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 080986
DO 10.1101/080986
A1 Max Liboiron
A1 France Liboiron
A1 Emily Wells
A1 Natalie Richárd
A1 Alexander Zahara
A1 Charles Mather
A1 Hillary Bradshaw
A1 Judyannet Murichi
YR 2016
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2016/10/14/080986.abstract
AB Marine microplastics are a contaminant of concern because their small size allows ingestion by a wide range of marine life. Using citizen science during the Newfoundland recreational cod fishery, we sampled 205 Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) destined for human consumption and found that 5 had eaten plastic, an ingestion prevalence rate of 2.4%. This ingestion rate for Atlantic cod is the second lowest recorded rate in the reviewed published literature (the lowest is 1.4%), and the lowest for any fish in the North Atlantic. This is the first report for plastic ingestion in fish in Newfoundland, Canada, a province dependent on fish for sustenance and livelihoods.Highlights (3–5 points, 85 char max including spaces)Plastic ingestion rate of 2.4% for Atlantic Cod (n=205)First recorded baseline for fish in Newfoundland, CanadaThis plastic ingestion prevalence rate is among the lowest recorded to dateUsed citizen science to collect GI tracts from fish destined for human consumption