Anthropogenic Microparticles: Coastal Distribution in the Southern Mexican Pacific Coast

• Published in: Thalassas : revista de ciencias del mar Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 917 - 926
• Main Authors: Plata, María del Carmen Alejo, Hernández, Cristóbal Reyes, Sempoal, Miguel Angel Ahumada, Acosta, Adrián Felipe González, Galindo, Jorge Eduardo Herrera
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01-10-2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abundance; Anthropogenic factors; Coastal Sciences; Coasts; Dispersion; Distribution; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Fish & Wildlife Biology & Management; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Marine & Freshwater Sciences; Microfibers; Microparticles; Oceanography; Oceans; Offshore; Plankton; Rivers; Statistical analysis; Statistical methods; Winds; Zooplankton; Gulf of Tehuantepec; Oaxaca; Zooplankton; Marine debris; Anthropogenic fibers
• ISSN: 0212-5919; 2366-1674
• DOI: 10.1007/s41208-021-00325-0

The buoyancy properties of anthropogenic microparticles (AM) have contributed to their wide dispersion across rivers and oceans, as they tend to float and can be transported by wind and marine currents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the abundance and distribution of AM in relation to zooplankton abundance in three coastal localities from the southern Mexican Pacific. Thirty-nine zooplankton samples were collected along eleven transects perpendicular to the coast of Oaxaca; in three localities: Puerto Escondido, Huatulco, and Salina Cruz, from April 30 to May 12, 2017- Sixty-eight percent of samples showed evidence of AM (mainly microfibers), with abundances varying by locations between 0.004 to 8.72 microparticles per 1000 m
3
. The relationship between zooplankton biomass and AM abundance was not statistically significant (
r
2
 = 0.0104), likely due to the dispersion of AM towards the open ocean by offshore winds that reduce coastal concentrations.