Microplastics are on the rise in the Eastern Pacific Ocean threatening coastal Ecuador, a region of the world known for its rich biodiversity and important fisheries.
It belongs to one of the planet's most abundant fish families. For the first time researchers have mapped the genetic main groups of the northern glacier lanternfish.
– Anisakis, or herring worm, was found in all the samples. On average, we found 840 herring worm larvae per fish, and 76 of them were in the edible parts of the fish, says marine scientist Paolo Cipriani.