Spawning windows amplify microplastic risks for marine fishes. (IMAGE)
Caption
pawning windows amplify microplastic risks for marine fishes. This graphical abstract shows how microplastics and co-contaminants—polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)—can overlap with spring spawning windows, exposing adult fish, eggs and larvae during one of the most vulnerable stages of the life cycle. By integrating global pollution observations with reproductive data from marine fishes, the study found that microplastic-mediated vector effects increased synergistic bio-risk by 42.3% during spring spawning, while critically endangered fishes experienced nine times higher exposure than least-concern taxa. The analysis also showed that 7.8% of global critical spawning grounds exceeded ecological safety thresholds, with climate-driven warming and hypoxia further intensifying reproductive-period vulnerability.
Credit
Environmental Science and Ecotechnology
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CC BY-NC-ND