Ingestion of microplastics by commercial fish in Skudai river, Malaysia

Microplastics are plastic particles less than 5 mm and have been classified as contaminants of emerging concern. In recent years, the ubiquity of microplastics has caused a serious threat to aquatic animals worldwide. Over the past decade, the ingestion of microplastics has been extensively reported in various marine animals. However, studies on ingested microplastics in the aquatic animal in freshwater ecosystems are still scarce. Therefore, the presence of microplastics in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of freshwater fish in Skudai River was investigated. Sixty fish were caught belonging to 6 species and 3 feeding habits. The analysis shows all species ingested microplastics. By individual, only 40% of the fish ingested microplastics. Microplastics with size between 1 to 5 mm were the most dominant particles found in the GI tract. There was a significant difference in number of microplastics among different species. A positive correlation was observed between the number of microplastics and Fulton’s condition, body weight and weight of the GI tract. This investigation represents the first study on the interaction between microplastics and aquatic animals in fishing and urban area of this country, where fish are consumed by local people.