Supported by: NOAA National Seabird Program, the Switzer Foundation, and the University of Rhode Island
Anna Ruth Robuck, URI Researcher and U.S. EPA Postdoctoral Fellow. Photo credit: Jason Jaacks.
Seabirds, particularly the Great Shearwater, are prone to plastic ingestion and are excellent indicators of plastic pollution. The Great Shearwater Plastic Project, a multi-institution study, is one of the first of few global studies, and the first in the Atlantic, to comprehensively measure plastic ingestion by Great Shearwaters and to assess plastic polymer identity relevant to a regional species. The project team includes collaborators and support from Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA Northeast Fisheries Observer Program, National Marine Fisheries Service, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, North Carolina State University, and University of Cape Town Institute of African Ornithology (South Africa).