Microplastic ingestion in jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca (Forsskal, 1775) in the North Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

The presents work is the first study that evidences the ingestion of plastic and microplastics in jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca in the Atlantic Ocean. A bloom of this organism was collected from Gran Canaria island coast. Then, separating umbrella from tentacles, a process of KOH digestion was carried out to quantify the plastic particles. A 97% of the individuals analysed had microdebris. The majority were blue and mostly microfibres, mainly composed by cotton. The presence of items in the gastrovascular cavity was confirmed. These results warn about the implications for jellyfish health, the transfer to jellyfish predators, human consumed jellyfish and the transport of carbon and microplastic in the water column.