A comparative analysis of microplastics in feces of terrestrial mammalian wildlife around Hong Kong.

ABSTRACT: Plastic ingestion by terrestrial mammals, especially wildlife near urbanized areas, remains underexplored, with limited studies exploring species-specific differences. This study addresses these gaps by examining microplastics (MPs) in feces of five wild species from Hong Kong's countryside: buffalo, cattle, wild boar, macaques, and porcupines. These species were selected for their high interaction with humans and consumption of anthropogenic food. Fecal samples were digested, visually inspected, and MPs characterized using spectroscopy. Microplastics were detected across all sites: macaques (0.2-6.9 MPs/gram dry weight [d.w.], 50-90% occurrence), boars (0.5-3.7 MPs/gram d.w., 60-100% occurrence), porcupines (2.1 MPs/gram d.w., 80% occurrence), buffalo (17.7 MPs/gram d.w., 100% occurrence)

SUBMITTER: Sina M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12222741 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature