Marine Debris and Seabird Welfare

Marine plastic debris entangles and is ingested by seabirds at alarming rates, causing serious welfare harm from choking, gut blockage, and entanglement injuries across entire ocean ecosystems.

Key Facts

An estimated 90% of seabirds have ingested plastic according to recent studies
Fulmars are monitored as an EU ocean plastic health indicator because of their high ingestion rates
Plastic ingestion reduces stomach volume, causing malnutrition and slow starvation
Floating rope and netting entangles diving seabirds including gannets and cormorants
Cigarette filters are among the most common items found in seabird stomachs
Microplastics are now found in the eggs and chicks of seabirds across all ocean basins

Welfare Considerations

Marine plastic welfare harm to seabirds is chronic, pervasive, and worsening. Birds that ingest plastic feel satiated but are not nutritionally fed - a slow starvation mechanism that affects millions of individuals. Chicks fed plastic by unknowing parents die before fledging. Entangled birds experience traumatic injury, often losing the ability to fly or swim. The welfare harm is at population and individual scale simultaneously. Source reduction - preventing plastic from entering the ocean - is the most impactful intervention. Beach cleaning removes material before it breaks down into microplastics that are impossible to recover.

What You Can Do

Participate in beach and coastal cleans to remove marine plastic before it harms seabirds
Reduce single-use plastic consumption at home and advocate for plastic legislation
Support OSPAR Commission monitoring of seabird plastic ingestion as a policy lever
Back marine plastic source reduction legislation nationally and internationally
Choose products without microplastic ingredients that enter the marine environment through wastewater