Plastic pollution is distributed patchily around the world’s oceans. Likewise, marine organisms that are vulnerable to plastic ingestion or entanglement have uneven distributions. Understanding where wildlife encounters plastic is crucial for targeting research and mitigation. Oceanic seabirds, particularly petrels, frequently ingest plastic, are highly threatened, and cover vast distances during foraging and migration. However, the spatial overlap between petrels and plastics is poorly understood. Here we combine marine plastic density estimates with individual movement data for 7137 birds of 77 petrel species to estimate relative exposure risk.
Clark, B.L., Carneiro, A.P.B., Pearmain, E.J. et al. Global assessment of marine plastic exposure risk for oceanic birds. Nat Commun 14, 3665 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38900-z