Publications by authors named "Elizabeth J Berens McCabe"
Article Synopsis
- Microplastics have been detected in the gastrointestinal fluid of bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota Bay, indicating they might ingest these particles through contaminated fish.
- A study analyzed muscle and GI tissues from 11 fish species that dolphins eat, finding microplastics in 82% of muscle samples and 97% of GI samples, with varying particle shapes and amounts based on the species and diet type.
- Pinfish exhibited the highest concentration of microplastics, raising concerns about the impact on dolphins, wildlife health, and seafood safety due to widespread plastic contamination in estuarine environments.
Monitoring ecological changes in marine ecosystems is expensive and time-consuming. Passive acoustic methods provide continuous monitoring of soniferous species, are relatively inexpensive, and can be integrated into a larger network to provide enhanced spatial and temporal coverage of ecological events. We demonstrate how these methods can be used to detect changes in fish populations in response to a Karenia brevis red tide harmful algal bloom by examining sound spectrum levels recorded by two land-based passive acoustic listening stations (PALS) deployed in Sarasota Bay, Florida, before and during a red tide event.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiet is a fundamental aspect of animal ecology. Cetacean prey species are generally identified by examining stomach contents of stranded individuals. Critical uncertainty in these studies is whether samples from stranded animals are representative of the diet of free-ranging animals.
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