Impact of contamination due to ingestion of microplastics on commercial fish in relation to their trophic habits

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-4308254/v1

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Research Article

Impact of contamination due to ingestion of microplastics on commercial fish in relation to their trophic habits

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4308254/v1

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The abundance of microplastic particles may be linked to fish populations through ingestion, due to the presence of debris throughout the marine environment. In this study, the influence of biological characteristics on the ingestion of microplastics was evaluated in 28 species of fish from the Sciaenidae family and 12 from the Ariidae family in the estuaries of Tumaco and Buenaventura Bay. The samples were collected in high and low precipitation seasons during the years 2020 and 2021, then a characterization of the stomach contents of 894 specimens in Tumaco Bay (479 Sciaenidae and 415 Ariidae) and 758 specimens in Buenaventura Bay was carried out. (267 Sciaenidae and 491 Ariidae) the number of microplastics per stomach was recorded. Additionally, their trophic level (TL) was calculated, and they were grouped into three groups (high, medium, low). As the main result, a positive correlation was found between the trophic level and the consumption of microplastics for both the Ariidae family (p=0.0254) and the Sciaenidae family (p=0.0028). Additionally, differences in consumption were found between TL for the Ariidae family (p(Per)=0.017) and Sciaenidae (p(Per)=0.031), with the high TL being the one that presented the greatest presence of microplastics (MP). This agrees with what was found in studies carried out in estuarine coastal areas, where a positive relationship is shown between the abundance of microplastics and the trophic level of organisms. Likewise, the Condition Factor (CF) presented lower values (<1) in adult individuals that consumed MP, which indicates that the well-being of fish species decreases with this contaminant. These findings indicate that microplastics generate a negative effect on the normal development of fish, as has been reported in other parts of the world.

microplastics

trophic level

estuaries

condition factor

The condition factor of the fish is affected due to the incidence of microplastics in stomach contents.
Fish species with higher trophic levels have a greater risk of ingesting microplastic pollutants.
Specialist fish species have a lower risk of ingesting microplastic pollutants.

Population growth, high demand for goods and services, requires constant exploitation of resources (Badii et al., 2021), which leads to a growing problem regarding the poor final disposal of waste, which translates into one of the main causes of marine pollution (Saravia-Arguedas et al., 2019; Molina et al., 2021). Within this waste is plastic, which reaches the marine environment through different ways runoff from rivers, dumping and/or direct waste (Garcés Ordóñez & Bayona Arenas, 2019). A subcategory of these elements are microplastics, particles with a size less than 5 mm, which, being so small, are easily ingested by aquatic organisms, which introduces them into the food chain causing adverse effects on marine fauna (Sarria-Villa & Gallo-Corredor, 2016).

According to the above, studies on diet are important, since they can detect the presence of microplastics and characterize more susceptible trophic groups (Souza Oliveira et al., 2020). Given that, according to the existing environmental conditions, the spatiotemporal distribution of adult and juvenile fish may vary (Sandoval-Huerta et al., 2014b). Likewise, it is a determining component in terms of nutrition, since fish may or may not find sufficient amounts of food, and if they do not find it, they ingest available elements such as microplastics, which is a determining factor in their growth (Bustos Montes & Peréz Ferro, 2003).

Thus, the life cycle strategies of fish can be determined by specific combinations of population traits that influence the behavior of the species, including their diet, according to environmental characteristics (Teichert et al., 2017). Diet is a crucial tool to identify functional groups, trophic level, and prey preference, in a habitat with different environmental gradients, such as those contaminated with microplastics (Martins et al., 2017). These variables are essential to evaluate the degree of well-being of a specimen or population using the Fulton Condition Factor (CF) (Leyton et al., 2015).

The Sciaenidae family is characterized by being one of the families with the largest number of species (Nion et al., 2013). Furthermore, most of these species are pelagic (Calle Morán & Galván Magaña, 2017), and present specialist-type feeding behaviors (Bajeca Serrano, 2016). Many species of this family have a wide distribution, some are estuarine and others marine, which part of their initial life cycle takes place in estuaries. (Milliteli Maria Ines, 2007). As for the Ariidae family, it has a marine, estuarine and freshwater distribution.(Bentacur-Rodríguez & Acero, 2004), with demersal habits (Aguilera et al., 2020), it is known that their feeding pattern is omnivorous of the benthophagous type, with a wide trophic spectrum, since they feed on crustaceans, fish, plants and detritus.(Kobelkowsky & Castillo-Rivera, 1995).

On the other hand, extensive studies have currently reported ingestion of plastics in different species of marine fauna.(Bour et al., 2018), since, due to their size, they can be ingested directly or indirectly through the prey-predator interaction, which can impact the transfer at levels higher trophic (Yıldız et al., 2022). As reported in the literature for organisms from different trophic levels, it was evident that when the trophic level increases, the average concentration of microplastics (MP) and particle size also increases (Gouin, 2020).

For this reason, the objective of this research work was to determine the relationship between the presence of MP in the digestive tract with the trophic level, prey intake, as well as the impact on the condition factor in two families of commercial fish from the Colombian Pacific.

2.1. Study area

The present study was carried out on the Pacific coast, one of the study areas corresponds to Buenaventura Bay, located in the department of Valle del Cauca, with an area of 681.9km² (4 ° 7 ′ 49 ″ N to 77 (°26′ 27″W and 3°13′ 13′N to 77°32′ 58″W), with depths ranging from 25 to 30 m (Gallego & Selvaraj, 2019). The second study point corresponds to the Bay of Tumaco, with an approximate area of 350 km² (1°45'00'' to 2°00'00'' N and 78°30'00'' to 78°45'00 ''W), with depths varying between 0 and 50 m (Tejada-Vélez et al., 2003). Both bays have a monomodal rainfall regime, which indicates that the year is divided into a rainy semester and a dry weather semester.(Tejada-Vélez et al., 2003).

These areas were chosen because their dynamics generate a variety of environmental impacts, due to their proximity to important population centers (Barragán & de Andrés, 2016) in addition, benefits for the development of economic and subsistence activities such as industrial and artisanal fishing (Mahoney & Bishop, 2017).

For the development of this project, 4 sampling stations were selected in each bay, considering the environmental gradients of the estuarine ecosystem of each area. According to the expected pollution level, the estuary was divided into two sections, outer (EE) and inner (IE). The outer section corresponds to the area of direct contact with the sea which provides salt water and the one that is furthest from the sources of direct contamination of microplastics, such as populated centers, while the inner section of an estuary it has waters with lower salinity typical of the river and therefore the biological species present may be different from those of the outer section.(Piccolo, MC; Perillo, 1997), in addition to being closer to populated centers (Fig. 1)

Field phase

With the purpose of analyze the fish species of the two families of interest, sampling was carried out during the years 2020 and 2021, in Buenaventura Bay and Tumaco Bay under different hydroclimatic conditions (rainy season and dry season) and in different zones of the estuary (internal and external zone), to represent possible temporal and spatial variations in microplastic pollution. The collection of fish samples was carried out using three fishing gears. The first corresponds to the artisanal trawl net (changa), with a net eye size of 2.54 cm (Gamboa-García et al., 2018). The second gear used corresponds to the trammel net with an eye of 2". Finally, the third gear used corresponded to a hand line with size (10) hooks. The samples in the field were preclassified by species and by sampling station, then they were stored, refrigerated and transported to the laboratory for subsequent treatment (Duque et al., 2020).

2.2. laboratory phase

The collected specimens were identified taxonomically using the FAO taxonomic keys (Fischer et al., 1995), databases (Robertson & Allen, 2015; Froese & Pauly., 2022)and literature review. Each individual was weighed, total and standard length was determined, and sex and reproductive status were determined in the individuals that were possible. After this, the stomach was removed, preserving it in 4% formalin for subsequent analysis.

Finally, the food components were observed in the stereoscope (Motic sfc-11 binocular type) and separated into six categories (fish, crustaceans, mollusks, annelids -polychaetes, detritus and microplastics), the number of food items was counted, which were They were dried at 70°C for 24 hours and the dry weight was determined on an analytical balance (precision of 0.0001 g) (Weitere et al., 2018). For the specific case of microplastics, a visual identification was initially carried out to determine the general characteristics (shape, color, size) (Hidalgo-Ruz et al., 2012). Subsequently, calorimetry was used in order to confirm through exothermic reactions whether the visually selected material is a polymer (Toledo Martinez, 2019), those samples in which there were doubts that they were a plastic polymer were discarded.

Required precautions were taken to minimize microplastic contamination during the laboratory phase. Cotton laboratory coats and nitrile gloves were used at all process. The samples were also handled carefully and covered with aluminum foil. To prevent overestimation of air pollution (Torres, 2017), the use of air conditioning was avoided during sample processing and Petri dishes were left open as blanks to compare the elements associated with air and those found in the samples.

Particle size and heat resistance were taken into account to avoid overestimation of plastic particles, although all necessary measures were taken to rule out that it was not a plastic polymer.

2.3. Analysis of data

To analyze the Trophic Level (TL), the studied fish were classified into ranges depending on the result obtained with the diet for each family in each of the bays (Table 1):

Table 1

Trophic Level
T.L.	Family Ariidae		Family Sciaenidae
T.L.	Buenaventura	Tumaco	Buenaventura	Tumaco
Low	3.20–3.59	3.10–3.47	3.00–3.32	2.59–3.15
Medium	3.59–3.98	3.47–3.84	3.32–3.64	3.15–3.34
High	3.98–3.37	3.84–4.23	3.64–3.95	3.34–3.54

Regarding the trophic level (LT), according to(Odum & Heald, 1975), can be calculated in the following way:

$${LT}_{i}=1+\sum _{f=1}^{n}{DC}_{ij. }{LT}_{j}$$

Where TL represents the trophic level of the group;$\sum _{f=1}^{n}{DC}_{ij }$It is equivalent to the average of the prey in the diet for each of the groups, and the trophic level of each of the prey that are within group i.${TL}_{j}$

The above is subject to the development of each individual, since depending on its ontogeny, said trophic level can increase. Therefore, to determine the percentage of development, a relationship was made between the size of each individual and the maximum size recorded in the literature.(Cloutier, 2010). Another of the conclusive factors for determining TL is prey preference, andIn this case, the prey was classified into six groups (fish, crustaceans, mollusks, annelids and polychaetes, detritus and microplastics), with the help of this classification the dry weight was calculated, and the trophic level of the prey was determined for the TL calculation of each species analyzed (Windell J, 1971).

Additionally, the Fulton condition factor (K) was estimated to determine the degree of well-being of the species in this study in relation to MP consumption, since it allows comparing fish of the same length (Cifuentes et al., 2012). It was calculated with the help of the following formula.

$$K=100\left(\frac{W}{{L}^{3}}\right)$$

Where W equals wet body weight in grams and L equals length in centimeters.

As a method to explore the influence of trophic level and MP abundance, possible differences in the data groups were evaluated using the Permutational Multivariate Analysis of Variance (PERMANOVA). Significance values (p(PERM)) were calculated from 9999 permutations, taking α < 0.05 as statistically significant differences, based on Euclidean Distances and untransformed data.(Marinsek et al., 2022).In addition, SPEARMAN correlation analysis was used in order to evaluate the relationship between the consumption of MP in fish with respect to their condition factor.

A total of 1652 stomachs of 12 species of the Ariidae families and 28 species of the Sciaenidae family were analyzed, of which 758 came from Buenaventura Bay (491 Ariidae and 267 Sciaenidae) and 894 from Tumaco Bay (415 Ariidae and 479 Sciaenidae) (Table 2). A total of, 24% of the individuals from Buenaventura Bay and 33% of the Tumaco Bay had microplastics in their stomachs. In Buenaventura Bay, the mean number of microplastics found was 0.53 ± 0.22 particles/individual, which was lower than that found in Tumaco Bay with a mean of 0.65 ± 0.33 particles/individual. A total of 267 microplastics were found divided into 3 different types, Fibers (91%), Fragments (6%) and Pellets (4%) (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3). Likewise, the abundance by type of MP was identified in each of the families, with fibers being the most representative for both the Sciaenidae family (97%) and the Ariidae family (84%).

Likewise, an analysis was carried out by climatic season in each bay to elucidate if there were differences in MP intake for each family. It was found that precipitation had no relationship with MP intake for the Ariidae family, but there was a difference for the family Sciaenidae, being the season of low precipitation in Tumaco Bay where the highest MP intake occurred (Table 3).

Table 2

Number of analyzed stomachs by species and genus of the families Ariidae and Sciaenidae and relative frequency (RF) of ingestion of microplastics (MP)
Family/Species	Buenaventura		Tumaco
Family/Species	No. stomachs analyzed	FR (%) MP	No. stomachs analyzed	FR (%) MP
Ariopsis simonsi	17	0%	98	18%
Ariopsis	17	0%	98	18%
Bagre panamensis	144	14%	4	25%
Bagre pinnimaculatus	5	20%	189	29%
Bagre	149	14%	193	28%
Cathorops manglarensis	60	7%	5	40%
Cathorops multiradiatus	169	28%	27	19%
Cathorops steindachneri	21	5%	5	20%
Cathorops	250	21%	37	22%
Notarius biffi	1	0%	21	19%
Notarius cookei	1	0%	15	47%
Notarius kessleri	8	13%	11	27%
Notarius lentiginosus	0	0%	7	57%
Notarius planiceps	12	25%	3	100%
Notarius troschelii	53	9%	30	30%
Notarius	75	12%	87	34%
Ariidae	491	17%	415	27%
Cynoscion albus	2	0%	0	0%
Cynoscion analis	2	0%	12	0%
Cynoscion phoxocephalus	3	0%	2	0%
Cynoscion reticulatus	0	0%	2	0%
Cynoscion squamipinnis	1	0%	12	25%
Cynoscion stolzmanni	3	0%	7	14%
Cynoscion	11	0%	35	11%
Isopisthus remifer	0	0%	1	100%
Isopisthus	0	0%	1	100%
Larimus argenteus	50	4%	48	13%
Larimus effulgens	3	33%	4	0%
Larimus	53	6%	52	12%
Menticirrhus elongatus	6	0%	1	0%
Menticirrhus nasus	2	50%	3	0%
Menticirrhus panamensis	4	0%	3	0%
Menticirrhus	14	7%	7	0%
Nebris occidentalis	6	17%	1	0%
Nebris	6	17%	1	0%
Paralonchurus dumerilii	4	25%	13	0%
Paralonchurus peruanus	3	0%	1	0%
Paralonchurus petersii	9	22%	3	0%
Paralonchurus	16	19%	17	0%
Stellifer chrysoleuca	16	6%	2	50%
Stellifer ericymba	1	0%	5	0%
Stellifer fuerthii	8	25%	23	0%
Stellifer illecebrosus	15	13%	16	19%
Stellifer imiceps	0	0%	64	2%
Stellifer mancorensis	3	0%	4	0%
Stellifer melanocheir	28	4%	38	3%
Stellifer oscitans	15	0%	12	0%
Stellifer pizarroensis	6	50%	76	5%
Stellifer strabo	0	0%	2	0%
Stellifer typicus	11	9%	124	7%
Stellifer zestocarus	66	3%	0	0%
Stellifer	169	7%	366	5%
Sciaenidae	267	7%	479	6%
Total bay	758	24%	894	33%

Table 3

Variation in microplastic consumption by climatic season in each bay
Buenaventura	Ariidae	Sciaenidae
High Precipitation	0.43 ± 0.27	0.10 ± 0.08
Low precipitation	0.41 ± 0.20	0.12 ± 0.10
Tumaco	Ariidae	Sciaenidae
High Precipitation	0.33 ± 0.13	0.13 ± 0.02b
Low precipitation	0.44 ± 0.24	0.19 ± 0.04a

Values are expressed as the mean ± standard error. Values with different letters differ significantly (P < 0.05).

3.1. Trophic levels

Because the TL recorded in the literature correspond to adult individuals, the theoretical TL per species was calculated for each bay (Table 4), due to the conditions of the study, such as the maximum size recorded, which indicates that most of the fish captured were possibly in the middle of their development, likewise, it was observed that the prey varied depending on the bay, this is due to the difference in species, which in turn leads to the presence of different functional groups, generating implications in the structure and functionality of the food web.

Regarding the diet, it was possible to elucidate that in Buenaventura Bay the relative importance index (RII) for the Ariidae family corresponded in first place to crustaceans with 49%, followed by fish 24%, mollusks 17% and lastly debris 5% and MP 5%; For the Sciaenidae family, the first place corresponded to crustaceans 60%, in second place, fish 28%, followed by detritus 6%, mollusks 3%, annelids 2% and finally PM 1%. In the same way, IIR was calculated for Tumaco Bay, with the Ariidae family in first place corresponding to crustaceans 59%, in second place, fish 33%, in third place, detritus with 6% and finally MP with 1%; Regarding the Sciaenidae family, first place corresponded to crustaceans with 82%, secondly detritus 8%, fish 6% and annelids with 3%.

Additionally, under the conditions set out above, the bay with the highest TL corresponded to Tumaco, this is because its conditions are more marine-brackish than Buenaventura. Furthermore, the species with the highest TL in Buenaventura Bay correspond to Notarius cookei belonging to the Ariidae family and Stellifer melanocheir of the Sciaenidae family, as for Tumaco Bay, the largest TL was recorded in Ariopsis simonsi by the Ariidae family and Paralonchurus dumerilii in the family Sciaenidae.

Table 4

Trophic levels by species for each bay
Family Ariidae	Buenaventura	Tumaco
Specie	Buenaventura	Tumaco
Ariopsis simonsi	3.77	4.12
Bagre panamensis	3.68	3.99
Bagre pinnimaculatus	3.34	3.99
Cathorops manglarensis	3.13	3.43
Cathorops multiradiatus	3.96	3.21
Cathorops steindachneri	3.35	3.20
Notarius biffi	3.45	3.74
Notarius cookei	4.23	4.10
Notarius kessleri	3.60	3.80
Notarius lentiginosus		3.06
Notarius planiceps	3.50	4.00
Notarius troschelii	3.25	4.09
Family Sciaenidae	Buenaventura	Tumaco
Specie	Buenaventura	Tumaco
Cynoscion albus	3.23
Cynoscion analis	3.23
Cynoscion phoxocephalus	3.08	3.92
Cynoscion reticulatus		3.45
Cynoscion squamipinnis	3.32	3.53
Cynoscion stolzmanni	3.23	3.45
Isopisthus remifer		3.70
Larimus argenteus	3.81	3.43
Larimus effulgens	3.46	3.45
Menticirrhus elongatus	3.86
Menticirrhus nasus	3.40
Menticirrhus panamensis	3.89	3.44
Nebris occidentalis	3.52	3.45
Paralonchurus dumerilii	3.29	3.95
Paralonchurus peruanus	3.52
Paralonchurus petersii	3.38	3.31
Stellifer chrysoleuca	3.40	3.43
Stellifer ericymba		3.16
Stellifer fuerthii	3.06	3.30
Stellifer illecebrosus	3.00	3.07
Stellifer imiceps		3.58
Stellifer mancorensis	3.72	3.46
Stellifer melanocheir	3.95	3.44
Stellifer oscitans	3.40	3.46
Stellifer pizarroensis	3.42	3.44
Stellifer strabo		3.59
Stellifer typicus	3.61	3.54
Stellifer zestocarus	3.43

3.1.1. Consumption of microplastics and its relationship with trophic levels

The relationship between the MP found in the stomach contents and the TL of the studied fish was evaluated. The correlation between the MPs found in the Ariidae family and TL was moderately positive both in Buenaventura Bay (p = 0.018, rs = 0.62), and in Tumaco Bay (p = 0.026 – rs = 0.65), being the TL higher those with greater presence of MP in stomach contents. Contrasting result for the Sciaenidae family, which did not present significant correlations in either of the two bays, because the incidence of microplastics was very low (Table 5).

Table 5

Variation in microplastic consumption by trophic level in each bay
Calculated TL Ariidae Buenaventura	No of microplastics
High (3,84–4,23)	1,45 ± 0,10 a
Medium (3,47–3,83)	1,21 ± 0,11 a
Low (3,1–3,46)	1,0 ± 0.0 b
Calculated TL Ariidae Tumaco	No of microplastics
High (3,99–4,37)	1,61 ± 0,17 a
Medium (3,59–3,98)	1,13 ± 0.24 b
Low (3,20 − 3,58)	1,0 ± 0.0 b
Calculated TL Sciaenidae Buenaventura	No of microplastics
High (3,64 − 3,95)	1,0 ± 0.0
Medium (3,32 − 3,63)	1,3 ± 0.21
Low (3,00–3,31)	1,0 ± 0.0
Calculated TL Sciaenidae Tumaco	No of microplastics
High (3,34–3,54)	1,04 ± 0.19
Medium (3,15–3,33)	0.0 ± 0,0
Low (3,95–3,14)	1,0 ± 0.0

Values are expressed as the mean ± standard error. The mean values in the same column with different letters differ significantly (P < 0.05).

3.2. Prey consumption

The correlation between the MPs found in the stomach contents in the Ariidae family and the number of prey was significant positive in both, Buenaventura Bay (p = 0.00046, rs = 0.95), and Tumaco Bay (p = 0.00000126 – rs = 0.96). Regarding the Sciaenidae family, there was no significant correlation in Buenaventura Bay, while in Tumaco Bay there was a significant positive correlation p = 0.000069 – rs 0.93.

3.3. Condition factor

For the analysis of the condition factor and the number of MPs, the two most abundant species per family in each of the bays were used. In Buenaventura Bay corresponded to Cathorops multiradiatus and Bagre panamensis (Ariidae), and Larimus argenteus and Stellifer typicus (Sciaenidae). In Tumaco Bay the species were Ariopsis simonsi and Bagre pinnimaculatus /Ariidae) and Luntanus argenteus and Stellifer typicus (Sciaenidae).

The evaluated individuals of the species L. argenteus, Stellifer typicus, Cathorops multiradiatus and Ariopsis simonsi were between 40 and 60% of development, meaning that they were probably closer to their adult age, while the species of Catfish panamensis and Catfish pinnimaculatus were between 28 and 30% of their development, which may indicate that they were juvenile individuals.

Regarding the results obtained from the condition factor (CF) with respect to MP ingestion, a strong negative significant correlation was found in Buenaventura Bay (rs.=0.81) and moderate in Tumaco Bay (rs. .=0.43), where the most affected Ariidae species were C. multiradiatus, B. pinnimaculatus in Buenaventura and Tumaco respectively, while, L. argenteus (Sciaenidae) was the most affected in both bays. (Fig. 4).

Ingestion of microplastics was reported in 24% of the fish from Buenaventura Bay and 33% of the fish from Tumaco Bay. This may be due to the fact that the coastal areas of the Colombian Pacific are immersed in a problem due to poor management of both solid and liquid waste, due to the lack of provision of public sanitation services, as well as waste treatment systems, which converges in the contamination of the estuaries of the bays of Buenaventura and Tumaco.(Calero -Hernández et al., 1995; Guzmán. et al., 2014). Many of these wastes are plastic, which has increased the availability of this contaminant in estuarine ecosystems and the probability of finding them in the fish stomach contents (INVEMAR, 2016).

These results are consistent with what was found in Buenaventura where incidental consumption of MP was recorded in three species of soles of the Achirridae family (Tafurt-Villarraga et al., 2020). Moreover, in Tumaco Bay, MP consumption was recorded by 30 individuals belonging to 10 species of the Sciaenidae family (Vivas-Sánchez et al., 2023). This had been also reported for other areas of the Pacific, such as Costa Rica, where consumption of microplastics was reported in 100% of the analyzed individuals of the species Opisthonema sp. (Bermúdez-Guzmán et al., 2020). On the other hand, in Magdalena Bay, Mexico, MPs were found in the digestive tract of 66% of different species, such as Calamus brachysomus; Paralabrax maculatofasciatus; Eucinostomus dowii, Balistes polylepis; Achirus mazatlanus and Mugil curema (Jonathan et al., 2021).

Regarding the climatic periods, there were differences in MP consumption in Tumaco, in the season of low precipitation for the Sciaenidae family, which may be due since in this season, the water with higher salinity is more dense, bringing the particles afloat (Tálamo et al., 2016; Vidal et al., 2021; Arboleda et al., 2024, Bas, 2020). Although the Ariidae family did not present differences in consumption by climatic seasons, this family was the one that presented the highest MP intake during the study, this is because the species of this family have omnivorous-benthic habits (Bentacur-Rodríguez & Acero, 2004), which generates a greater risk of MP consumption (Hernández-Morales et al., 2018). Moreover, most the species of the Ariidae family are residents of the estuary, which is why they can consume this pollutant in different climatic seasons (A. Molina, 2020).

On the other hand, the microplastics found in the stomach contents correspond mainly to fibers (92.5%), which could be related to ropes, nets and fishing lines, which become stranded fishing trash (Wright et al., 2021). This agrees with what has been reported in other studies where plastic fibers represent > 80% of the abundance of microplastics in the species analyzed (Wang et al., 2020; Tafurt-Villarraga et al., 2020; River et al., 2022; Vivas-Sánchez et al., 2023).

The highest trophic levels were recorded in Tumaco Bay, which may be related to the shape of the bay, since is more open it has a greater saline influence, facilitating the entry of more marine species. In contrast, Buenaventura Bay has a greater influence of fresh water, which can influence changes in the structure and function of the fish communities present in these ecosystems, such as the size of fishes, resulting in younger individuals (Molina, 2020; Flores-Hernández et al., 2021).

Additionally, individuals from medium and high trophic levels of the Ariidae family presented greater consumption of microplastics than low levels. These results are in accordance with what was found in the Liaohe estuary in China, where MP consumption was greater in individuals of higher trophic levels, such as fish, compared to mollusks, crustaceans and worms (Wang et al., 2021), suggesting a greater presence of microplastics in individuals of higher trophic leves due to bioaccumulation and trophic transfer (Cohen et al., 1993; Jonsson et al., 2005; Bhutto et al., 2023).

In contrast, the species of the Sciaenidae family did not present differences in MP consumption in relation to the trophic level, this may be due to the fact that the studied species are transient visitors to the estuary (Feutry et al., 2010; Rosero Alpala et al., 2015; A. Molina et al., 2020), and that these species have specialist feeding habits (Bajeca Serrano, 2016).

In this study, the consumption of microplastics was related to the number of prey ingested. It can be explained because the majority of the species analyzed are opportunistic, that is, there is a greater probability that the pollutant comes from one of the prey. According to this, it was found that the Ariidae family presented a directly proportional relationship between MP consumption and the number of prey ingested. In the case of the Sciaenidae family, this pattern could not be identified because their eating habits are more specific (Discover Life, 2006; Trop, 2010; Nion et al., 2013). Results similar to those found in the port of Jeloya in Norway, where it was demonstrated that MP consumption is determined by its feeding mode (Bour et al., 2018), and in what was found in the southwest of the tropical Atlantic, where it was reported that the consumption of MP may be due to the opportunistic behavior of the species (Hernández et al., 2019; Bas, 2020; Justino et al., 2021).

The condition factor (CF) of fish in both bays was affected by MP consumption, this may be because once the plastic is ingested, it can cause digestive problems, reduced food intake or complete loss of fish. appetite, which can reduce the weight of the fish (Laist, 1987; Derraik, 2002). These results are in accordance with what was found in Chile, where it was shown that Girella laevifrons, when ingesting plastic, presents weight loss, consequently reducing its FC (Mizraji, 2019), a negative correlation was also presented between the condition factor and the amount of MP for Gobionellus microdon in Guatemala (Mazariegos et al., 2021).

Microplastics were found in 24% of the individuals analyzed from Buenaventura Bay and in 33% of the individuals analyzed in Tumaco Bay. Moreover, it was observed that the most frequent type of MP within the stomach contents corresponded to fibers. (91%) followed by fragments (6%) and pellets (4%). This indicates that those species that at some point in their life cycle depend on the estuary may be at risk of ingesting this pollutant, but it does not necessarily accumulate in the body. On the other hand, the fibers may come from fishing gear or wastewater discharges, which generates an alert regarding the management of solid and liquid waste in the study areas.

There was a directly proportional relationship between the trophic level of the species and the consumption of MP, which was related to the amount of prey ingested, indicating that the highest incidence of this pollutant was found in active demersal predators such as representatives of the Ariidae family.

On the other hand, it was determined that the species that consumed MP in the two bays showed a decrease in their condition factor, which suggests that the consumption of this emerging pollutant could be affecting the growth and development of the fish. In the case of Buenaventura Bay, there were a significant decrease in the condition factor of Bagre panamensis (21%) Larimus argenteus (25%), and in Tumaco Ariopsis simonsi (14%), Bagre pinnimaculatus (33%), Larimus argenteus (26%) and Stellifer typicus (6%). In general, the species of the Ariidae family were more affected than the species of the Sciaenidae family.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and the Universidad de Nariño for their financial support and the research group “Ecología y Contaminación Acuática” for their field and laboratory support.

Finally, thanks to the participants of the projects “Risk due to mercury consumption and incidence of microplastics in commercial fish from coastal regions with high anthropogenic influence in the Colombian Pacific and Caribbean” number 57700 and “Strengthening research on pollution in ecosystems coastal areas of Valle del Cauca Code: 60100.

Funding information

We received financial support from the National University of Colombia for the project: “Risk due to mercury consumption and incidence of microplastics in commercial fish from coastal regions with high anthropogenic influence of the Colombian Pacific and Caribbean” Hermes code 57700, and the project Strengthening research on pollution ins ecosystem coastal areas of Valle del Cauca Code: 60100.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Availability of data and material

The data in this study are available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author.

Code availability

Not applicable

Author Contribution statement

JC, AM, and GD contributed to the conception and design of the study. Data collection was performed by JC and AM. The formal analysis was performed by JC. Procurement funds and resources were provided by GD. The first draft of the manuscript was written by JC and all authors commented on earlier versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Ethics approval

The methods in this study were approved by the ethics committee of the Environmental Studies Institute (Spanish acronym: IDEA) of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and follow international, national, and institutional guidelines for collection of samples in the field.

Consent to Participate

Not applicable

Consent for publication

Not applicable

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Editorial decision: Major revisions
27 Aug, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
28 May, 2024
Reviewers invited by journal
25 May, 2024
Editor assigned by journal
25 Apr, 2024
First submitted to journal
23 Apr, 2024

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Impact of contamination due to ingestion of microplastics on commercial fish in relation to their trophic habits

Status:

Version 1

Abstract

Figures

Highlights

1. Introduction

2. Methodology

2.1. Study area

2.2. laboratory phase

2.3. Analysis of data

3. Results

3.1. Trophic levels

3.1.1. Consumption of microplastics and its relationship with trophic levels

3.2. Prey consumption

3.3. Condition factor

Discussion

Conclusions

Declarations

References

Supplementary Files

Status:

Version 1