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Feeding habits and microplastic ingestion of short mackerel, Rastrelliger brachysoma, in a tropical estuarine environment

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Abstract

This study aimed to assess diet characteristics and ingestion of microplastics (MPs) by short mackerel (Rastrelliger brachysoma) based on fish size, water, depth, and season. Samples of fish were collected monthly from three depth contours during February 2019 and February 2020 by mackerel gill nets in the mouth area of Pattani Bay, Thailand. Plankton samples in the natural environment were simultaneously collected with fish sampling. Altogether, 541 individuals were used for stomach content analysis. The fish fullness index (FI) was influenced by season (p < 0.001), while the average number of food types (AF) was affected by fish size (p < 0.001) and season (p = 0.003). This fish is a specific planktonic feeder with a slightly low trophic level (2.39) and diet breadth (0.27). Diatoms (46.80%), calanoid copepods (15.85%), and dinoflagellates (13.95%) were the main food types found in the stomachs. While in the natural habitat, MPs contributed 7.04% of plankton samples, in this study, R. brachysoma stomach analysis found MPs contributed 0.35%. The ingestion of MPs was not affected by fish size, water depth or season (p > 0.05). The colors of MPs found were mostly blue, followed by green, red, and fragment. Based on diet composition and the prey selectivity index (-0.9), it is thus concluded that MPs are accidentally ingested by this species.

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The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the fishermen from Rusamilae village for fish sampling. We thank students and staff from the Department of Fishery Technology, Prince of Songkla University for their help during fish sampling and laboratory works. We express gratitude to Ms. Rena Frohman, Program Manager, Yunus Center Griffith University, Australia, for her proof reading.

Funding

The Ph.D. scholarship was granted under a Ph. D program of the “The Higher Education, Research Promotion and the Thailand’s Education Hub for Southern Region of ASEAN Countries Project, Prince of Songkla University and the Office of the Higher Education Commission” of (No. THE–AC 033/2017) for Kay Kine Soe. A grant for research proposal was supported under the “SAT ASEAN Collaboration Research” from Faculty of Science and Technology, Prince of Songkla University for Sukree Hajisamae as principal investigator.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Science and Technology, Prince of Songkla University, Pattani, 94000, Thailand

    Sukree Hajisamae

  2. Department of Marine Science, Myeik University, Myeik, 14051, Myanmar

    Kay Khine Soe

  3. Marine and Coastal Resources Institute, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, 90110, Thailand

    Kay Khine Soe, Siriporn Pradit & Jarunee Chaiyvareesajja

  4. Faculty of Fisheries and Food Science, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Terengganu, Malaysia

    Hisam Fazrul

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  1. Sukree Hajisamae
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Contributions

Conceptualization: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe. Methodology: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe; Jarunee Chaiyvareesajja. Formal analysis and investigation: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe; Siriporn Pradit. Writing-original draft preparation: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe. Writing-review and editing: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe; Siriporn Pradit; Jarunee Chaiyvareesajja; Hisam Fazrul. Funding acquisition: Sukree Hajisamae; Kay Khine Soe. Supervision: Sukree Hajisamae; Siriporn Pradit; Jarunee Chaiyvareesajja.

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Correspondence to Kay Khine Soe.

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Hajisamae, S., Soe, K.K., Pradit, S. et al. Feeding habits and microplastic ingestion of short mackerel, Rastrelliger brachysoma, in a tropical estuarine environment. Environ Biol Fish 105, 289–302 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01221-z

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