In Florida, a sea turtle drowned after a plastic bag filled with sand wrapped around its neck. In Virginia, a sei whale developed gastric ulcers, harming her ability to find food, after a DVD case she swallowed lacerated her stomach. In Delaware, a young, emaciated pilot whale was found dead with instant-ramen noodle bags in its gut.
Endangered marine animals, threatened with extinction, are losing their battle against plastic in the United States. Nearly 1,800 of them, including a significant number of sea turtles, have consumed or become entangled in plastic since 2009 and a new report says the true numbers are likely much more devastating.
Oceana, the world’s largest ocean conservation organization, released a report Thursday, detailing, for the first time, data showing plastic’s impact on marine mammals and sea turtles in the U.S. Of the 1,792 examples studied, a stunning 88% featured animals listed as endangered or threatened with extinction under the Endangered Species Act, including Hawaiian monk seals, manatees, Steller sea lions and all six species of U.S. sea turtle.
The new report sheds light on yet another life-threatening hazard for these high-risk creatures. Marine mammals already battle pollution, habitat loss and destruction, commercial fishing gear, vessel strikes, illegal poaching and harmful algal blooms not to mention a plethora of climate crises, from sea level rise to warming oceans.
Researchers surveyed dozens of government agencies, organizations and institutions to collect the data, which spans 40 different species. Oceana says the number of animals surveyed is far fewer than the actual number affected by the flood of plastics into our oceans, which it called “an unfolding disaster.”
“While there may never be a complete account of the fate of all marine animals impacted by plastic, this report paints a grim picture,” study author Dr. Kimberly Warner, a senior scientist at Oceana, said in a news release. “The world is hooked on plastic because the industry continues to find increasingly more ways to force this persistent pollutant into our everyday routines and it’s choking, strangling and drowning marine life.”
Copyright © 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.