Scientists discover microplastics in whales
American scientists from Stanford University have discovered microplastics in the body of whales. It turned out that animals absorb garbage together with plankton, Lenta.ru reports.
Ecologists observed 200 baleen and toothed whales in areas where they had previously recorded the largest accumulations of plastic debris on the planet. Researchers found that mammals from the first group ingests the most plastic, at an estimated 10 million pieces per day, while from the second group – 500,000. In other words, plastic in the body of animals accumulates rapidly, leading to whales’ health problems.
Baleen whales are the largest mammals in the modern world. They feed on planktonic molluscs, crustaceans, and small fish.
Earlier it became known that traces of microplastics were first found in human blood, its particles can move around the body.
