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Anthropogenic Microparticles: Coastal Distribution in the Southern Mexican Pacific Coast

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Abstract

The buoyancy properties of anthropogenic microparticles (AM) have contributed to their wide dispersion across rivers and oceans, as they tend to float and can be transported by wind and marine currents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the abundance and distribution of AM in relation to zooplankton abundance in three coastal localities from the southern Mexican Pacific. Thirty-nine zooplankton samples were collected along eleven transects perpendicular to the coast of Oaxaca; in three localities: Puerto Escondido, Huatulco, and Salina Cruz, from April 30 to May 12, 2017- Sixty-eight percent of samples showed evidence of AM (mainly microfibers), with abundances varying by locations between 0.004 to 8.72 microparticles per 1000 m3. The relationship between zooplankton biomass and AM abundance was not statistically significant (r2 = 0.0104), likely due to the dispersion of AM towards the open ocean by offshore winds that reduce coastal concentrations.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Secretaría de Marina, Estación de Investigación Oceanográfica, Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, crew of BI Tecolutla for granting access to the 2017-1 campaign. Thanks go to Auxilio Esparza, Pablo Porras, Nayeli Martínez for collecting samples. CAP, MAS, AGA and CRH thanks to the SNI-CONACyT program. AFGA also thanks to COFAA and EDI-IPN programs. This research was supported by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) and the Universidad del Mar through the projects PND-740 and 2IR1801, respectively.

Funding

This work was supported by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) and Universidad de Mar through the projects PND-740 and 2IR1801, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Recursos, Universidad del Mar, Campus Puerto Ángel, Ciudad Universitaria, Puerto Ángel, 70902, Oaxaca, México

    María del Carmen Alejo Plata, Cristóbal Reyes Hernández & Miguel Angel Ahumada Sempoal

  2. Instituto Politécnico Nacional-Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas. Av, Instituto Politécnico Nacional S/N, Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, CP. 23096. La Paz, Baja California Sur, México

    Adrián Felipe González Acosta

  3. Instituto de Industrias, Universidad del Mar, Campus Puerto Ángel, Oaxaca, México

    Jorge Eduardo Herrera Galindo

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  1. María del Carmen Alejo Plata
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Credit Author Statement

María del Carmen Alejo Plata

Credit roles: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Funding acquisition, Investigation Methodology, writing-original draft.

Cristobal Reyes Hernández

Credit roles: Formal analysis, Writing-review & editing.

Adrián Felipe González Acosta

Credit roles: Formal analysis, Writing-review & editing.

Jorge Eduardo Herrera Galindo

Credit roles: Formal analysis, Writing-review & editing.

Miguel Angel Ahumada Sempoal

Credit roles: Formal analysis, Writing-review & editing.

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Correspondence to María del Carmen Alejo Plata.

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Plata, M.d. ., Hernández, C.R., Sempoal, M.A.A. et al. Anthropogenic Microparticles: Coastal Distribution in the Southern Mexican Pacific Coast. Thalassas 37, 917–926 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41208-021-00325-0

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