In fact, bubble bursts caused by wave energy can release 100,000 metric tons of microplastics into the atmosphere each year. Because dolphins and other marine mammals breathe at the surface of the water, they may be especially vulnerable to exposure.
Where there are more people, there are usually more plastic. But for tiny plastic particles floating in the air, this connection isn’t always true. Airborne microplastics are not limited to densely populated areas; they pollute underdeveloped regions also.
Our research found microplastics in the breath of dolphins living in both urban and rural areas. estuariesbut we do not know if there are important differences in the quantities or types of plastic particles between the two habitats.
How we do our work
Breath samples for our study were collected from wild bottlenose dolphins during catch-and-release health assessments conducted in partnership with the Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, National Marine Mammal Foundationand Oceanographic Foundation.
During these brief permitted health assessments, we held a petri dish or a custom test. spirometer(a device that measures lung function) above the dolphin’s blowhole to collect samples of the animals’ exhaled breath. Using a microscope in our colleague’s laboratorywe looked for tiny particles that looked like plastic, such as pieces with smooth surfaces, bright colors, or fibrous shapes.
Since plastic melts when heated, we used a soldering needle to check if these suspicious parts were plastic. To confirm that they were indeed plastic, our colleague used a specialized method called raman spectroscopywhich uses a laser to create a structural fingerprint that can be linked to a specific chemical substance.
Our study highlights how extensive plastic pollution is and how other living things, including dolphins, are exposed. While the impacts of inhaling plastic on dolphin lungs are not yet known, people can help address the problem of microplastic pollution by reducing plastic use and working to prevent more plastic from polluting the oceans.