Marine litter in the upper São Vicente submarine canyon (SW Portugal): Abundance, distribution, composition and fauna interactions. Issue 1 (15th August 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Oliveira, Frederico; Monteiro, Pedro; Bentes, Luis; Henriques, Nuno Sales; Aguilar, Ricardo; Gonçalves, Jorge M.S.
• Is Part Of: Marine pollution bulletin. Volume 97:Issue 1/2(2015:Aug.)
• Page Start: 401
• Page End: 407
• Publication Date: 2015-08-15
• Subjects: S. Vicente -- Canyon -- ROV -- Litter -- Fishing gear -- Hook-and-line; Marine pollution -- Periodicals; Marine Biology -- Periodicals; Water Pollution -- Periodicals; Mer -- Pollution -- Périodiques; Publications périodiques; Pollution des mers; Lutte antipollution; Electronic journals; 363.7394
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.05.060
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0025-326X

Abstract

Highlights: Marine litter in the upper S. Vicente canyon was mainly marine sourced. Lost fishing gear was the prevalent type of litter on the seafloor. Litter abundance was higher over rocky substrates. Physical contact and entanglement were the major impacts of litter on benthic fauna. Abstract: Marine litter has become a worldwide environmental problem, tainting all ocean habitats. The abundance, distribution and composition of litter and its interactions with fauna were evaluated in the upper S. Vicente canyon using video images from 3 remote operated vehicle exploratory dives. Litter was present in all dives and the abundance was as high as 3.31 items 100 m −1 . Mean abundance of litter over rock bottom was higher than on soft substrate. Mean litter abundance was slightly higher than reported for other canyons on the Portuguese margin, but lower in comparison to more urbanized coastal areas of the world. Lost fishing gear was the prevalent type of litter, indicating that the majority of litter originates from maritime sources, mainly fishing activity. Physical contact with sessile fauna and entanglement of specimens were the major impacts of lost fishing gear. Based on the importance of this region for the local fishermen, litter abundance is expected to increase.