Ants worst affected by plastic waste, get snared in microparticles: Study

Even as we talk about the impact of plastic pollution on seabirds and marine animals, we often overlook how it has caused disastrous problems for landlubbing animals.

Now, experts have tried to fill this gap in their scientific endeavour, as they conclude that ants could be one of the first terrestrial animals/insects to have borne the brunt of widespread plastic pollution on the Earth.

“These last 15 years, we have acquired enormous knowledge about what happens in marine ecosystems, but it is time to expand to other systems and species for obtaining a greater perspective,” says urban ecologist Álvaro Luna of the European University of Madrid.

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The scientists found that the ants that they collected from a pine forest and near the summit of Spain’s La Palma’s volcano were entangled in plastic trash.

Watch:Most invasive ant species makes itself at home in Italy | WION Climate Tracker

Experts believe the ants may have picked up the plastic accidentally while foraging. They found out that even as they were entangled in plastic, they were still mobile and active. It was unclear how or whether the plastic had harmed the ants in any way.

Researchers believe that the starting points for these fibres might be nearby roads and hiking trails. Plastic particles can be transported over considerable distances by the wind, reaching remote areas such as those in La Palma where the team discovered the ants.

According to German marine ecologist Melanie Bergmann from the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in Bremerhaven, insects might have been inadvertently ensnared in plastic for an extended period, and this phenomenon may have escaped prior attention.

“The more we research, the clearer it becomes that plastic pollution is ubiquitous,” Bergmann said.

(With input from agencies)

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