微塑料对海洋动物和栖息地的威胁正在增加,这可能会影响海龟筑巢地。祁连玉群岛是中国剩余最大的绿海龟(Cheloniamydas)筑巢地。尽管远离大陆,微塑料污染不容忽视。在这项研究中,来自三个不同区域的表层沉积物中的微塑料污染水平,即,底部,潮间带,和上区域,在北岛被调查,祁连玉群岛.结果表明,上带微塑料的丰度明显高于底部带和潮间带(r=3.65,p=0.011),在北岛的西南海岸,微塑料的平均丰度最高。在底部区域,只有塑料块(88%)和纤维(12%)被发现。潮间带和潮上带微塑料的主要类型是塑料块(48%)和泡沫(42%),聚乙烯(PE)(40%)和聚苯乙烯(PS)(34%)是主要组分。这些微塑料的类型和成分与周围海水中的不同,但是在海滩上的塑料碎片中发现了相应的类型和成分。同时,还观察到海滩上有多个破碎的塑料实例。因此,我们认为北岛海滩上的微塑料主要来自微塑料碎片的碎片,表明二次微塑料。建议进一步加强海滩上塑料杂物的定期清洁,特别是去除小塑料碎片,为了减少海滩塑料碎片破碎产生的二次微塑料污染,更好地保护中国南海最重要的海龟筑巢地。
The threat of microplastics to marine animals and habitats is increasing, which may affect sea turtle nesting grounds. The Qilianyu Islands are the largest remaining green turtle (Chelonia mydas) nesting grounds in
China. Despite being far from the mainland, microplastic pollution cannot be ignored. In this study, the level of microplastic pollution in surface sediments from three different zones, namely, the bottom, intertidal, and supratidal zone, was investigated on North Island, Qilianyu Islands. The results showed that the abundance of microplastics in the supratidal zone was significantly higher than that in the bottom zone and intertidal zone (r = 3.65, p = 0.011), with the highest average abundance of microplastics located on the southwest coast of North Island. In the bottom zone, only plastic blocks (88%) and fibers (12%) were found. The main types of microplastics in the intertidal and supratidal zones were plastic blocks (48%) and foam (42%), with polyethylene (PE) (40%) and polystyrene (PS) (34%) being the predominant components. These types and components of microplastics differed from those in the surrounding seawater, but corresponding types and components were found in the plastic debris on the beach. Meanwhile, it was also observed that there were multiple instances of fragmented plastic on the beach. Thus, we suggest that the microplastics on the beach in North Island were mainly derived from the fragmentation of microplastic debris, indicating secondary microplastics. It is recommended to further strengthen the regular cleaning of plastic debris on the beach, especially the removal of small plastic debris, in order to reduce the pollution from secondary microplastics generated by the fragmentation of beach plastic debris and to better protect
China\'s most important sea turtle nesting site in the South
China Sea.