Hotter sand from microplastics could affect sea turtle development


Date:
June 13, 2023
Source:
Florida State University
Summary:
New research has found that extreme concentrations of microplastics
could increase the temperature of beach sand enough to threaten
the development of incubating sea turtles.


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FULL STORY ==========================================================================
New research from Florida State University published in Frontiers in
Marine Science found that extreme concentrations of microplastics could increase the temperature of beach sand enough to threaten the development
of incubating sea turtles.

Sea turtles play a vital role in the marine ecosystem, and for these
oceangoing reptiles to thrive, they need healthy beaches where their
eggs can incubate successfully.

"Sea turtle sex, fitness and hatchling success is influenced by
temperature," said lead author Mariana Fuentes, an associate professor
in FSU's Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science. "Not
much is known on how the presence of microplastic affects the thermal
profile of sand. Understanding how changes to the environment could
affect the temperature of nesting grounds is important for monitoring
the future of these keystone species." Researchers mixed sand from
beaches at the FSU Coastal and Marine Laboratory with black and white microplastic. Concentrations of microplastic ranged from 5% to 30% of
the total volume of the sediment sample. Then they recorded temperatures
from July through September 2018 by burying digital thermometers at the
same depth at which loggerhead sea turtles typically lay their eggs.

They found that samples with higher microplastic concentrations had
greater increases in temperature, with the sample containing 30%
black microplastic pieces having the highest mean difference in
temperature. Those samples were 0.58 degrees Celsius warmer than the
control group, an increase that could potentially significantly alter
sea turtle hatchling sex ratios, physiological performance, and mortality
of embryos.

The good news from the study is that the 30% concentration of
microplastics in those samples equates to about 9.8 million pieces
per cubic meter, a higher concentration than has been currently found
on beaches worldwide. Current research has found the highest reported concentrations collected from beaches is about 1.8 million pieces per
cubic meter.

But the amount of microplastics at nesting sites has only recently been explored. It could be higher in locations that haven't been studied yet,
and demand for plastic is forecast to increase in the future.

At nesting grounds where incubating eggs are near a 29-degree Celsius
boundary -- below which most hatchlings are male, and above which most hatchlings are female -- smaller concentrations of plastic could be
enough to push the temperature beyond a crucial threshold.

"Sea turtle eggs are sensitive to temperature, and microplastics are
another factor adding to the heat they face," Fuentes said. "This study
gives us a baseline for future research on how they are affecting the
nesting environment." The research was supported by FSU's Garnet and
Gold Scholar Society.

Researchers with the University of Florida and the University of North
Carolina Wilmington were co-authors on this study.

* RELATED_TOPICS
o Plants_&_Animals
# Marine_Biology # Sea_Life # Fish # Frogs_and_Reptiles
o Earth_&_Climate
# Oceanography # Environmental_Awareness # Weather #
Climate
* RELATED_TERMS
o Sea_turtle o Dune o Beach o Global_warming o Turtle o
Snapping_turtle o Quicksand o Ice_core

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Florida_State_University. Original
written by Bill Wellock. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Mariana M. P. B. Fuentes, Valencia Beckwidth, Matthew Ware. The
effects
of microplastic on the thermal profile of sand: implications for
marine turtle nesting grounds. Frontiers in Marine Science, 2023;
10 DOI: 10.3389/fmars.2023.1146556 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230613190835.htm

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