Anthropogenic microfibers are highly abundant at the Burdwood Bank seamount, a protected sub-Antarctic environment in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

Microplastics debris in the marine environment have been widely studied across the globe. Within these particles, the most abundant and prevalent type in the oceans are anthropogenic microfibers (MFs), although they have been historically overlooked mostly due to methodological constraints. MFs are currently considered omnipresent in natural environments, however, contrary to the Northern Hemisphere, data on their abundance and distribution in Southern Oceans ecosystems are still scarce, in particular for sub-Antarctic regions. Using Niskin bottles we've explored microfibers abundance and distribution in the water column (3–2450 m depth) at the Burdwood Bank (BB), a seamount located at the southern extreme of the Patagonian shelf, in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean. The MFs detected from filtered water samples were photographed and measured using ImageJ software, to estimate length, width, and the projected surface area of each particle. Our results indicate that small pieces of fibers are widespread in the water column at the BB (mean of 17.4 ± 12.6 MFs.L−1), from which, 10.6 ± 5.3 MFs.L−1 were at the surface (3–10 m depth), 20 ± 9 MFs.L−1 in intermediate waters (41–97 m), 24.6 ± 17.3 MFs.L−1 in deeper waters (102–164 m), and 9.2 ± 5.3 MFs.L−1 within the slope break of the seamount. Approximately 76.1% of the MFs were composed of Polyethylene terephthalate, and the abundance was dominated by the size fraction from 0.1 to 0.3 mm of length. Given the high relative abundance of small and aged MFs, and the oceanographic complexity of the study area, we postulate that MFs are most likely transported to the BB via the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Our findings imply that this sub-Antarctic protected ecosystem is highly exposed to microplastic pollution, and this threat could be spreading towards the highly productive waters, north of the study area.