**Abstract:**

Plastic pollution is widely regarded as a major threat to ocean ecosystems. An increasing number of studies show that seabirds frequently ingest plastics, but the drivers of variation in ingestion rates among and within populations and species are not well understood. Vulnerability to plastic pollution will depend on foraging method, diet, and spatial overlap of foraging areas with plastic debris in the oceans. Small pelagic species such as gadfly petrels and storm-petrels, which are among the most threatened groups of seabirds, show higher incidence of plastic ingestion - likely due to their gut anatomy, diet and their propensity to forage in ocean gyres, where surface plastics accumulate. Until recently, relatively little was known about the foraging ecology and at-sea distribution of these species, but with miniaturised tracking devices, we now have more detailed information on their movements. In this study, we use predictive models of plastic debris distributions (based on ocean circulation) along with analyses of the extensive tracking data held in the Seabird Tracking Database to map the spatial overlap (and therefore potential risk) of plastic encounter by small pelagic seabirds. Our analysis highlights the populations, species, seasons and regions for which there is greatest exposure to plastic pollution. Ultimately, our study provides a robust, evidence-based assessment of the problem of plastic pollution for pelagic seabirds, and should lead to increased understanding of the conservation needs of these cryptic, highly threatened species.

**Authors:**

Bethany Clark¹, Ana Carneiro¹, Elizabeth Pearmain¹, Thomas Clay², Richard Phillips³, Andrea Manica⁴, Marie-Morgane Rouyer⁵, Win Cowger⁶, Marcus Eriksen⁷, Carolina Hazin¹, Maria Dias¹

¹BirdLife International, ²University of California Santa Cruz, ³British Antarctic Survey, ⁴University of Cambridge, ⁵CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, ⁶University of California, Riverside, ⁷Five Gyres Institute

Plastic connectivity: disentangling the problem of plastic pollution for pelagic seabirds

**Abstract:**

Plastic pollution of the World Ocean is widely recognized major and increasing threat to the marine environment, and the seabirds are among the most affected groups of marine biota. Recent studies revealed global distribution of plastic, both macro- and micro-plastics, including most remote areas of the Arctic Ocean. Several recently published papers summarized information on the plastic and seabirds in the Arctic and adjacent areas, and emphasized poor coverage of the topic and lack of the data. Russia is washed by 12 seas and has longest sea shores inhabited by globally important populations of seabirds, but information about plastic pollution in the Russian waters, especially in relation to marine birds and their habitats is virtually absent. Here we present first national overview summarizing information on plastic pollution of the coastal habitats of marine birds and their interaction with plastic debris and microplastic. Our review covers Russian Arctic and seas from the Baltic Sea to and Far East seas. Plastic debris presents in coastal habitats of all studied seas including shores of the most remote high-arctic islands. Data on entanglement or plastic incorporation into the nests of marine birds, collected through interviews and dedicated surveys, are summarized and mapped. The most impacted nesting colonies and affected species are highlighted. All available data on digestion of the plastic particles observed in the Russian seas are compiled. Geographical patterns and possible sources of plastic in seabird habitats are discussed. Possibilities and scopes of further studies and monitoring of the plastic impact on marine birds as well as use of seabirds as fro monitoring of plastic pollution in Russian seas as part of the circumpolar / global monitoring schemes are assessed. The work is partly supported by AMBI / CAFF project Plastics and Seabirds: Habitat mitigation and Russian-Norwegian project MALINOR.

**Authors:**

Maria Gavrilo¹, Ekaterina Tolmacheva², Larisa Zelenskaya³, Yuri Artyukhin⁴, Yulia Bublichenko⁵, Uliana Babiy⁶, Yulia Bogomolova⁷, Alexander Cherenkov⁸, Elena Golubova³, Dmitry Pilipenko⁹, Olga Prokopenko³, Vladimir Semashko¹⁰, Irina Utekhina¹¹, Grigory Tertitskiy¹², Eugene Syroechkovskiy¹³

¹Association Maritime Heritage, ²Kandalaksha State Nature Reserve, ³Institute for Biological Problems of the North RAS, ⁴Pacific Institute for Geography RAS, ⁵Saint-Petersburg Scientific Centre of RAS, ⁶Wrangel State Nature Reserve, ⁷Nenets State Nature Reserve, ⁸Moscow State University, ⁹Commander Islands State Nature Reserve, ¹⁰retired, ¹¹Magadan State Nature Reserve, ¹²Institute for Geography RAS, ¹³BirdsRussia

Seabirds and plastic pollution in the Russian seas - first national review on the problem

**Abstract:**

As bite-sized plastics increasingly invade our oceans, the past decade has seen a rise in studies seeking to understand how plastic ingestion affects the health of wildlife. Seabirds are well represented among plastic-ingesting taxa; with 44% of 409 species currently recorded to ingest plastic, a figure predicted to increase to 99% of species by 2050. Tubenoses (Procellariiformes) are especially well known for plastic-eating behaviour; 63.2% of 144 species are currently known to ingest plastic, with frequencies of up to 100% of individuals in some populations. Though scientists perceive hundreds of health impacts of plastic ingestion on vertebrate animals, few studies find lethal outcomes and research attention has shifted to identifying sub-lethal effects. Sub-lethal health concerns include both physical effects on nutrition, damage to the gut, gut dysbiosis; and chemical or toxicological effects from exposure to plastic-associated (additive and adsorbed) metals and hydrophobic organic chemicals, including toxicity and endocrine disruption. Evidence for statistically significant plastic-associated effects is well-supported, but how many of these effects have demonstrated evidence for health consequences at an organism level or an ecologically relevant scale? Does the ingestion of non-lethal plastic loads cause widespread health consequences for individuals and populations? Is ingestion of plastic no different to ingestion of naturally occurring indigestible items? Or does the evidence lie in a middle ground somewhere between these oft argued extremities. Here we summarise the current state of knowledge of sub-lethal health effects of plastic ingestion in seabirds. We argue that multiple potential pathways between plastic and the measured effect, over-interpretation, exposure concentration and confounding at the root of the disagreement between scientists. We recommend learning from more established fields such as toxicology to establish good practice for reporting on sub-lethal health effects of plastic ingestion in seabirds, with the aim of transparently presenting evidence in a format which disentangles the demonstrated from the perceived.

**Authors:**

Lauren Roman¹, Britta Denise Hardesty¹, Chris Wilcox¹

¹CSIRO

Sub-lethal health effects of plastic ingestion in seabirds: Disentangling the demonstrated from the perceived

The goal of this project is to investigate the correlation between discharge and drainage basin area with the hope of being able to create a simple equation relating the average discharge from a spring, to the drainage area feeding that spring. Having such a relationship would allow us to measure discharge from any given spring and estimate the drainage area flowing to that spring. This is helpful in the event of a pollution event occurring within a spring and land managers wondering where the pollution may have come from and can travel to. Study locations include springs on Ward Branch Creek, Doling Park, Silver Springs, Smallin Cave, and Jones Spring. Doling Cave and Jones Spring are home to caves, and water flows exit their respective caves. Smallin Cave, Jones Spring and Doling Park (Giboney Cave) have dataloggers recording water temperature about every 15 minutes. Ward Branch Creek, and Silver Spring do not have temperature loggers. Having temperature-loggers can give insight on whether those sites are being fed by deeper groundwater flow, shallow groundwater, or both. Flow volume is calculated on every site except Smallin Cave. Initial data shown opposite trends in temperature between Doling Park’s cave, and Jones Spring Cave with the introduction of moderate precipitation. The spring’s temperature typically indicates whether the spring is fed by a shallow drainage system (caves or similar) or by a deeper (and larger) groundwater aquifer. Using this information, the discharge volumes will help us sort out smaller drainage basins from larger groundwater systems. We will be using the equation Q=KA^C, to estimate discharge, (“Q”) in ft³/sec. We will be graphing upstream drainage areas (“A”), against baseflow (“Q”), and plotting each spring on the graph. We hope to find a good line of correlation. If there is a good line of best-fit, the slope of that line will equal our (“K”) factor within the full equation. This equation has been used in various other hydrologic studies and practices to estimate discharge amounts in various locations (Galster & Pazzaglia & etc., 2006). Initial data shows that baseline flow for Doling Park and Jones Spring Cave are 4ft^3/sec for Doling Park, and 7.2ft^3/sec for Jones Spring. We have found that Jones Spring consistently drops in temperature with the introduction of precipitation (substantial rain). However, Doling Park has shown it is much more radical, and has little to no relation in temperature trends to Jones Spring. This data so far gives us some insight on the similarities and differences between 2 of our locations. In conclusion, this new data can prove beneficial to the cities and communities on The Springfield Plateau in regard to the movement of water, and the study of groundwater in Springfield Missouri.  

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Plastic connectivity: disentangling the problem of plastic pollution for pelagic seabirds

Seabirds and plastic pollution in the Russian seas - first national review on the problem

Sub-lethal health effects of plastic ingestion in seabirds: Disentangling the demonstrated from the perceived

Temperature and Discharge Monitoring of Springs and Streams to Approximate Water Drainage Basins in The Springfield Plateau, Missouri

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