Scientists Identify Plastic as New Threat to Andean Condors in Protected Areas

Plastic is everywhere and now, scientists have confirmed plastic as a new threat to Andean condors even in protected areas of Peru. Research revealed high amounts of plastic in the diets and the regurgitated pellets of these birds.

Researchers were studying Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) feeding interactions in Peru when they noticed that samples from the birds contained plastics. Even more alarming is that they found the plastic in the birds’ diets repeatedly.

“We were very surprised to find plastic in so many samples,” Victor Gamarra-Toledo, an ornithology researcher at the Natural History Museum of Peru’s National University of San Agustín de Arequipa, told Mongabay. “When we finished our field work, we began looking at the birds’ pellets — regurgitated balls that are made up of undigested matter — and we were surprised to find an excessive amount of plastic.”

Although other studies have observed plastic consumption of Andean condors in other regions, this time researchers were finding plastic in the diets of birds in protected areas. The studied birds were located in the San Fernando National Reserve along the coast and in Pampa Galeras Barbara D’Achille National Reserve of the Andes.

The team found plastic in all dietary samples collected in the coastal region and in 85% of samples collected from the Andean region. In samples collected in the coastal area, scientists primarily found microplastics. In the Andean region, samples included plastics of all sizes, from microplastics to plastic bags. They recently published the findings in the journal Environmental Pollution.

“This worries us even more, because condors are at the top of the food chain,” Gamarra-Toledo said. “Finding evidence that they are contaminated with plastic means that the links below the condor are also contaminated.”

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Red List), the Andean condor species is Vulnerable, with only 6,700 mature individuals remaining. The species may already be extinct in Venezuela.

The researchers predicted that the birds were possibly consuming plastics and microplastics up through the food chain, with their prey first eating the plastics. Alternatively, the Andean condors could be directly consuming plastic on thrown-out foods, for which they could be scavenging.

“We have found plastic in the stomachs of animals consumed by the condor, including masks used during the pandemic, as well as disposable plates,” Gamarra-Toledo told Mongabay. “This shows that the transfer of plastics can occur through direct consumption in the food chain.”

Plastic hasn’t typically been considered a concern for Andean condors, especially those in protected regions. But the study authors urged for immediate action to reduce plastic pollution. IUCN reported the common threats to Andean condors as lead poisoning, deliberate poisoning of carcasses that the birds would scavenge and other human activity meant to deliberately kill members of the species.