A black-tailed gull (image: National Institute of Biological Resources)
SEOUL, Feb. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — The marine waste produced at ports and fish farms is affecting the reproduction of black-tailed gulls, according to a recent study.
A paper published by the Korea Environment Institute showed that 82 pieces of marine detritus were found in the breeding grounds for black-tailed gulls on Nando Island in the southwestern city of Taean between April and July 2020.
Among the waste items 66 were plastic, accounting for 80.5 percent of all waste. The remaining 16 were metal.
At 74.4 percent, the majority were fishing gear, including 23 fishing lines, and 15 fishing hooks.
Where did the waste come from?
The breeding grounds on Nando Island have been a designated natural monument since 1982.
The island cannot be accessed unless it is for management and academic purposes. Therefore, trash found on the island isn’t from the island.
The research team attached a location-tracking device to five black-tailed gulls to track where the marine waste came from.
GPS data showed that black-tailed gulls frequently feed at ports and aquaculture farms, during which the nets thrown about in the area may have become attached to the gulls, who then brought them all the way to the breeding grounds, or the gulls engulfed plastic pieces, mistaking them for feed.
This indicates that the marine waste near the breeding grounds may affect the breeding environment.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
