Deep-sea microplastics aging and migration exerted by seamount topography and biotopes in the subtropic Northwest Pacific Ocean

Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) have drawn exponential attention as anthropogenic pollutants, which have invaded every corner of planet. Seamounts are prominent features of the deep-sea topography, acting as breeding ground for marine animal calves and hotspots of pelagic biodiversity, yet MPs pollution in seamounts is scarcely studied. We investigated the MPs load in the whole vertical profile of seamount ambient water in the Subtropical Northwest Pacific Ocean. Based on focal plane array Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometry, MPs were detected in all layers, and varied from 0.9 to 3.8 items L^-1, PP and PE were dominant, PA and PET tended to gather at the seamount summit. With depth increasing, small MPs (20-50 μm) were dominant, and MPs surface roughness including crack, hole, and biofouling showed an increase. Three plastic-degrading bacteria were noted in the layers around the seamount, indicating that the seamount community may accelerate MPs aging and further migration. Our work first unveiled the MPs occurrence in the whole vertical profile of the seamount. It reveals that ocean MPs migration and degradation are significantly affected by the unique topography and biotopes of the seamount.

Keywords: Biodegradation; FPA-FTIR; Microplastics migration; Seamount biotopes; Small microplastics.