Plastic has become abundant in the oceans and proved to be a threat to marine and coastal fauna. In this study, we present the first record of synthetic debris ingested by the shorebird American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) in Brazil. We collected 24 stomach contents from October 2007 to October 2015 and 58% were juveniles. Synthetic materials were found in 100% of stomachs. Used plastic fragments and plastic pellets were the most frequent items, beige and white were more common colors. Synthetic material may be unintentionally ingested directly through substrate consumption or indirectly through prey consumption. Hence, debris ingestion may be common, representing an impact to coastal birds. Based on our results, we hope to highlight the need for public policies to reduce the disposal of synthetic debris in the oceans and beaches.

The concentrations of nine heavy metals accumulated in different organs of two crab species collected from the South East coast of India were estimated. The order of trace metal concentration in different organs of Portunus pelagicus was Cu > Mn > Cd > Ni > Pb > Co > Hg = Cr = U in gills, Cu > Mn > Cd > Ni > Pb = Co > Hg > Cr = U in hepatopancreas, and Cu > Cr > Ni > Mn > Cd > Pb > Co > Hg > U in muscles, whereas that for Portunus sanguinolentus was Cu > Mn > Cd > Ni > Pb > Co > Hg > Cr = U in gills, Cu > Mn > Cd > Ni > Pb = Co > U > Cr = Hg in hepatopancreas, and Cr > Cu > Ni > Mn > Cd > Co > Pb > Hg = U in muscles. The order of trace metal uptake for different organs was gills > hepatopancreas > muscles. Individual mean bioaccumulation index (IMBI) values varied between 0.0 and 0.52, 0.0 and 0.28, and 0.06 and 0.30 for gills, hepatopancreas, and muscles, respectively. Cr in muscles of P. sanguinolentus and Cu and Cd in all organs of both the species were found to be higher than the maximum permitted concentration recommended by food safety guidelines. Target hazard quotient (THQ) results suggested that there is a potential risk due to Co, Cd, and Cr, particularly for children, if the crab consumption frequency is more than once a month.

The coastlines of many Arabian cities are now dominated by structures such as seawalls, breakwaters and jetties as urbanization has expanded rapidly in the region. Coastal development has substantially degraded the mangrove forests, saltmarshes, seagrass meadows, oyster beds and coral reefs that traditionally provided invaluable ecosystem goods and services to coastal trading villages of the Arabian Gulf. Regional awareness of environmental issues is growing, however, and local governments are increasingly promoting more sustainable urban development. The use of ecological engineering approaches, along with improved environmental policies, may mitigate some past impacts, and will potentially create new development projects with greater ecological benefits for more sustainable growth in the future. In this paper, we discuss past coastal development in the Gulf, and offer advice on how ecological engineering could be used to enhance the ecological benefits of coastal infrastructure, particularly by encouraging the colonization of juvenile corals and fishes. Such approaches can encourage more sustainable development of this increasingly urbanized seascape.

Plastic debris in the oceans is a major and growing problem in global environmental pollution. There are increasing concerns that plastic debris is a source of contaminant, either added during manufacturing or adsorbed from the environment. However, there is little information about the acute toxicity of leachates from plastic debris on marine organisms. In this study, we conducted experiments to evaluate the toxicity of leachates from two single-use polyethylene plastic bags (PB1 and PB2) with the embryo and larvae of the commercial clam Meretrix meretrix. Results showed that fertilization of the embryos was not affected by plastic leachates, but the developments of D-veliger larvae, including survival, deformity, and shell height, were significantly affected by plastic leachates from both PB1 and PB2 compared to the controls of filtered seawater. We speculate that compounds leaching from plastic bags are responsible for the observed toxicity. Therefore, leaching toxicity from plastic debris should be considered when assessing the risks of plastic pollution in the oceans.

Knowledge about the occurrence of emerging organic micropollutants in the marine environment is still very limited, especially when focusing on the Belgian Part of the North Sea (BPNS). This study therefore optimized and validated a Speedisk® based SPE and LC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS method to tackle the challenge of measuring the expected ultra-trace concentrations in seawater. This method was applied to 18 samples collected at different locations in the open sea and harbor of the BPNS. Forty-eight compounds, among which several pharmaceuticals, personal care products or pesticides described in the EU Watchlist, were detected – some for the first time in seawater – at concentrations ranging up to 156 ng L⁻¹. Moreover, the untargeted screening potential of the newly developed HRMS method was highlighted by revealing the presence of up to 1300 unknown components in a single sample and by assigning molecular formulae to those components demonstrating high discriminative potential between samples.

Pollution by microplastics has become a global threat affecting coastal habitats such as sandy beaches and their resident macrofauna. The goal of this study was to assess the influence of microplastics on the feeding behavior and growth rate of a widespread sandy beach amphipod, Orchestoidea tuberculata. These organisms were exposed to artificial food prepared with Poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene) microspheres (8 μm particle size) at 3 different concentrations (0%, 5% and 10%). The amphipods consumed significantly more food when the concentration of microplastics was 0% and significantly less when the concentration was 10%, both in trials in which they had a choice (preference experiments) and those in which they did not have a food choice. In contrast to this, the amphipod's absorption efficiency and estimated growth rates were not significantly affected by the concentration of microplastics. Combined, these results indicate that high microplastics concentrations (e.g. 10%) cause a reduction in the amphipod's consumption rates and, indirectly, may affect the role of this species as a main consumer of stranded seaweeds in sandy beaches ecosystems.

The frequency of disease within coral communities was evaluated using an 18-month series of coral photographs taken before, during, and after a major dredging program at Barrow Island, off Australia's northwest coast. Up to 60 corals were assessed repeatedly at each of four dredging ‘impact’ sites (<1 km from dredging), and four ‘reference’ sites (>20 km from dredging). Contrary to an earlier report, the frequency of occurrence of coral disease (usually <5% of corals) was not significantly altered by dredging. The pattern of occurrence of coral disease does not constitute a suitable early warning bioindicator of dredging impacts on coral. This study suggests that disease is difficult to measure and evaluate, and is not a key indicator in the potential impacts of dredging on coral health. We propose that environmental monitoring during dredging should continue to focus on known impact indicators.

Although coastal dunes exhibit typical vegetation which involves species adapted to extreme environmental conditions, the mobilization and colonization by non-native species represents a challenge in its conservation and management. In this work, eight dune systems located along the Atlantico Department, Caribbean coast of Colombia were surveyed, finding within them the presence of two plant species recognized as invasive: Calotropis procera and Cryptostegia madagascariensis. The impacts of these two invasive plant species can be significant at all ecological levels in the dune systems. The above demands the implementation of urgent management actions. Eradication seems the optimal control alternative, however preventing invasive plant species from infesting new areas is more cost-effective and efficient than trying to restore the system after it is infested. Data presented in this paper is the first step in the future development of an early detection program in the study area.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and alternative halogenated flame retardants (AHFRs) were measured in eleven mollusk species collected from the Chinese Bohai Sea. PBDEs and AHFRs were detected in all species, and their average total concentrations were in the range of 22.5–355 and 10.0–84.3 ng/g lipid weight, respectively. Decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) and decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE) were the dominant halogenated flame retardants (HFRs), contributing 22.5% to 73.6% and 3.1% to 38.3% of the total HFRs, respectively. The levels of PBDEs and AHFRs were moderate to high from a global perspective. Interspecific differences in the accumulation of PBDEs and AHFRs were characterized by heat map and cluster analysis. Composition profile differences were also observed, with higher proportions of AHFRs in gastropods than in bivalves. These species-specific differences in concentrations and profiles in mollusks were attributed to different species traits, including feeding habit, trophic level, and metabolic potential.