Beached seabirds as plastic biomonitors in Brazil from the Beach Monitoring Project of the Santos Basin (PMP-BS)

Bioindicator species are useful to monitor wildlife exposure to plastic pollution, and responses to plastic leakage and policy interventions. Here we explore the biomonitoring potential of different seabird and shorebirds species across six years of monitoring in Brazil. Using the necropsy stranding database of the Beach Monitoring Project of the Santos Basin (PMP-BS), we evaluated i) the frequency of birds-plastic interactions in Brazil; ii) whether plastic interactions have changed through time and in different coastal regions; and iii) potential bioindicators for monitoring the exposure of seabirds to plastic in the nearshore South Atlantic Ocean. We found 37 species that had ingested plastic, including ten new records, found that the rates of tube-nosed seabirds increased through time, and suggested two potential species. We discuss the potential for biomonitoring marine pollution in the South Atlantic Ocean using PMP-BS, providing a scheme for a better plastic pollution monitoring in Brazil. [Display omitted] •Thirty-seven bird species had ingested marine debris prior to death.•We found ten new records including three seabirds and seven shorebirds.•Plastic and other synthetic waste represented 87 % of diagnosed items ingested.•Two species have potential to track changes in plastic pollution through time.•Improvements to biomonitor plastic pollution in Brazil are provided.