Effects of Polyethylene Microplastics in Agricultural Soil on Eisenia fetida (Annelida: Oligochaeta) Behavior, Biomass, and Mortality

Autor: Milica Baloš, Aleksandra Petrović, Aleksandra Tubić, Tijana Zeremski, Sonja Gvozdenac, Dejan Supić, Vojislava Bursić
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: Agriculture, Vol 14, Iss 4, p 578 (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2077-0472
DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040578
Popis: The presence of microplastic particles in agroecosystems has profound implications for soil quality, crop yield, and soil biota. Earthworms are widely recognized as valuable soil bioindicators due to their abundance, fast reproduction, and easy manipulation. The aim of this study was to observe Eisenia fetida avoidance behavior and changes in biomass and mortality rate in soil samples spiked with polyethylene microplastic particles. Three types of soil sampled from the agricultural fields (“Banat 1”, “Banat 2”, and “Bačka”) were tested, as well as three microplastic concentrations (0.1, 0.2, and 0.3%). The calculated avoidance percentages ranged from 18.67% for “Banat 1” and 23.70% for “Banat 2” to 27.40% in the case of “Bačka” soil samples. Generally, E. fetida specimens avoided the sections with plastic in all bioassays: 38.42% of the earthworms were in the chamber section that contained microplastics, as opposed to 61.58% in the control section. The changes in the earthworms’ post-test biomasses were directly proportional to the number of surviving earthworms, with the highest loss in “Bačka” soil samples with 0.3% MPs (−53.05%). The highest mortality rate (46%) was noted in “Bačka” soil samples spiked with the highest concentration of microplastic particles.
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