ABSTRACT

Microplastic pollution has become a worldwide threat and impacts various animal species that ingest them. However, current knowledge of terrestrial animals ingesting microplastics is insufficient. Here we present the first preliminary study to analyze the ingestion and presence of microplastics in South American terrestrial herpetofauna. From November 2019 to March 2020, we actively searched for herpetofauna in 13 transects and two selected locations in Pilar, Paraguay. Three species of terrestrial herpetofauna were studied: Rhinella diptycha (n = 128), Hemidactylus mabouia (n = 133), and Tropidurus torquatus (n = 50). We examined stomach contents from 311 individuals by either stomach flushing (n = 43), or fecal analysis (n = 268). We found the presence of ingested microplastics in all species (n = 81) at varying amounts (R. diptycha: 48.44%, H. mabouia: 12.03%, and T. torquatus: 6.00%). We also found that proximity to water sources did not have an effect on microplastic ingestion. These findings provide further evidence that microplastic contamination is rife in environments and species that have not been previously tested for.

摘要

微塑料污染已成为一种全球性威胁，并影响到摄取它们的各种动物物种。然而，目前对陆生动物摄入微塑料的了解还不够充分。在这里，我们提出了第一项初步研究，以分析南美陆生爬行动物中微塑料的摄入和存在。从 2019 年 11 月到 2020 年 3 月，我们在巴拉圭皮拉尔的 13 个样带和两个选定地点积极寻找爬行动物。研究了三种陆生爬行动物：Rhinella diptycha ( n = 128)、Hemidactylus mabouia ( n = 133) 和Tropidurus torquatus ( n= 50）。我们通过胃冲洗（n = 43）或粪便分析（n = 268）检查了 311 人的胃内容物。我们发现所有物种 ( n = 81) 都摄入了不同数量的微塑料（R. diptycha：48.44%，H. mabouia：12.03%，和T. torquatus：6.00%）。我们还发现，靠近水源对微塑料的摄入没有影响。这些发现提供了进一步的证据，表明微塑料污染在以前未进行过测试的环境和物种中普遍存在。