Ingestion of Microplastic by Fish of Different Feeding Habits in Urbanized and Non-urbanized Streams in Southern Brazil

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Ingestion of Microplastic by Fish of Different Feeding Habits in Urbanized and Non-urbanized Streams in Southern Brazil Thiago D. Garcia & Ana L. P. Cardozo & Bárbara A. Quirino & Katia Y. Yofukuji & Maria J. M. Ganassin Santos & Rosemara Fugi

& Natália C. L. dos

Received: 28 April 2020 / Accepted: 29 July 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020

Abstract Most studies that address microplastic (MP) ingestion by fish are conducted in marine environments; however, freshwater ecosystems such as rivers and streams are also important sources of these particles in coastal areas. Considering that increasing urbanization surrounding watersheds increases the sources of plastic pollution and that fish feeding behavior may influence the probability of ingestion of these particles, the aim of this study was to evaluate the ingestion of MP by fish of different feeding habits in urbanized and non-urbanized streams. The fish were captured in ten streams in Southern Brazil and the stomach contents of 294 individuals belonging to 13 species were analyzed. Individuals of ten species ingested MP of fiber type. From a

generalized linear mixed model, we observed that the urbanized streams and the omnivorous habit showed a positive correlation with MP intake. Our results suggest that both types of streams present MP, but this pollutant is probably more prominent in heavily urbanized sites, which may represent important sources of MP for larger systems along the river basin. This evidences the importance of preserving riparian areas of small order streams as a means to reduce MP inputs into these ecosystems.

Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-020-04802-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

1 Introduction

T. D. Garcia Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Rodovia Celso Garcia Cid. Pr, 445 Km 38°PR 86.057-970 Londrina, Brazil A. L. P. Cardozo (*) : . A. Quirino : K. Y. Yofukuji : M. J. M. Ganassin : R. Fugi Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais, Universidade Estadual de Maringá, Avenida Colombo, 5790, Maringá, PR 87020-900, Brazil e-mail: [email protected] N. C. L. dos Santos Centro de Educação Superior da Região Sul, Departamento de Engenharia de Pesca e Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, R. Cel. Fernandes Martins, 270, Laguna, Santa Catarina, Brazil

Keywords Plastic pollution . Fibers . Anthropogenic particles . Trophic guild . Freshwater . Neotropical ecosystem

Aquatic ecosystems have been impacted by various types of pollution (Bhuiyan et al. 2013; Imhof et al. 2017), resulting in degradation of ecosystems as well as threatening human health and other forms of life (Chaudhry and Malik 2017). Among the environmental pollutants present in aquatic ecosystems, microplastics (MPs; < 0.5 mm) are now recognized as emerging pollutants of great concern and are considered a priority research topic (Barboza and