Using photographs to record plastic in seabird nests

Area of Science:

• Marine Biology
• Environmental Science
• Conservation Science

Background:

• Plastic debris in seabird nests serves as an indicator of marine pollution.
• Accurate monitoring requires large sample sizes, but traditional nest surveys cause significant disturbance to breeding birds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an efficient and less disruptive method for sampling plastic in seabird nests.
• To characterize plastic use in brown noddy (Anous stolidus) nests and investigate factors influencing plastic prevalence.

Main Methods:

• Utilized photographs to rapidly characterize plastic content in brown noddy nests at Ducie Atoll.
• Compared plastic prevalence between Ducie Atoll (southeast Pacific) and Inaccessible Island (South Atlantic).

Main Results:

• Photographic sampling allowed for rapid characterization of nest plastics with limited disturbance.
• Brown noddy nests at Ducie Atoll showed a significantly higher prevalence of plastic (97%) compared to Inaccessible Island (41%).
• A preference for blue-green plastic items was observed in the nests.

Conclusions:

• Photographic nest surveys offer an efficient, low-disturbance method for monitoring marine debris.
• Nesting habitat and natural material availability significantly influence plastic loads in seabird nests.
• This method provides a permanent record of pollution and reduces risks associated with cryptic debris.