A plastic finger was found in the stomach of a beached turtle (6 photos + 1 video)

Recently, dead turtles have been increasingly washed up on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Alas, poor people die due to plastic entering their bodies. Analyzing the bodies of turtles that recently washed ashore, scientists found hundreds of plastic objects in their guts - and even a plastic finger, in sad evidence of how humans are responsible for plastic pollution of the planet.





Scientists from the University of Exeter, England, recently analyzed the bodies of sea turtles that washed up on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea in large numbers. Hundreds of plastic items were found in the animals' guts: bottle caps, chewing gum wrappers, and even a plastic witch's finger from a Halloween costume.

"This finger's journey from a child's Halloween costume to a turtle's organs reveals the entire life cycle of plastic," said Dr Emily Duncan, lead author of the study from the University of Exeter.



These turtles primarily feed on jellyfish and small prey from the seabed (such as crustaceans), so this turtle could easily have mistaken its finger for a crab claw. For the study, scientists analyzed 135 loggerhead sea turtles that either washed ashore or were found in fishing nets off northern Cyprus. During the study, scientists found 492 pieces of macroplastic in the guts of turtles, including 67 pieces in just one turtle. The most common materials were polypropylene (37%) and polyethylene (35%).



According to scientists, turtles most often eat those pieces of plastic that are most similar to their regular food. Unfortunately, they still do not know all the consequences of exposure to macroplastics on the health of turtles - but in any case, it has a detrimental effect on them. Experts plan to continue research and include other turtle species in the sample.