Death by Plastic

How dumb are these birds?

We eat (and drink and smoke) things that kill us too, you know. In fact since we know what they do to us, I'd say that we're the dumber species.

I think its a really cool idea, but should we generalize to its fullest? like is ALL consumerism evil? if there were no plastic, then perhaps he would have no artistic voice - but in all reality it is very good and I think inventive and expressive.

Hmmm Interesting, reminds me I have to go empty my "art" can.

Its high time we banned plastic...

It may appear that these birds are "dumb", but albatrosses have evolved to eat (and feed to their young) squid, fish eggs and such, which float on the ocean's surface. Plastics have been a part of this flotsam for less than a century. These birds may well be extinct soon, all thanks to plastic. Please be careful with your lighters and pop bottle lids... trash doesn't have to be dropped near the water to make it into a bird's stomach.

"Many people think that the biggest source of pollution in the oceans is oil spilled from ships, but most marine pollution is litter that starts out on land... albatrosses fly hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles in search of food for their chicks. They look for squid and fish eggs floating on the surface of the water. Unfortunately, plastic floats, and Laysan albatross are particularly attracted to it. They eat it, mistaking if for food, then they fly back to the nest and feed bottle caps, lighters, fishing lures and other pieces of plastic to their young. The chicks starve to death, with stomachs full of plastic."

-- from the Monterey Bay Aquarium website

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/oceanissues/plastics_albatross/

probably one of the saddest thing ever :(

Its high time we banned plastic…

You go first.

It is FAKE propaganda put out by the "Mother Earth" cult.

Good prank! Pretty gross and tasteless, but a good prank.

Did you really think a baby albatross's stomach takes up 97% of their body cavity?

Did you think baby albatrosses don't have lungs, kidneys, hearts, bladders, spleens, or livers?

I'm all for not throwing plastic in the water, trust me, but these guys who do this fake stuff are just hurting the cause.

ugh...I am actually ardently against plastic ocean litter and would do anything to save those annoying shrieking neck-weights called albatrosses...but these people make anyone sensible with viable solutions seem like they're in the same group as crackpots!

My observation is that most animals carefully watch what they eat.

Wow What a picture !

I call shenanigans. Scratch that, I call utter, utter bullshit.

Um...this is not bullshit. I've seen this first hand with other birds.

First, remember that these are very big birds, and in this state they are not only emaciated, they are almost entirely decomposed. If you collect this plastic and put it in a baggy, it certainly does have plenty of room to fit in one of these birds along with all of their other internal organs, etc.

It's very strange that people think this is a hoax. A lot of this wouldn't happen if lighters and bottle caps could be recycled. That's not so complicated or difficult to do. It's not some plot to take away your rights. Gimme a break.

Learn the difference between healthy distrust and paranoia.

Those who think this is a hoax will probably not be convinced by similar evidence from other sites, but here is a comparable image from the Royal Society in Great Britain (http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2009/jun/16/pollution-waste), and here's one from the Seattle Times (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/pacificnw04232006/coverstory.html), and here's a study out of Hawaii (http://research.pomona.edu/karnolab/2009/07/21/isi-island-scene-investigations-into-pelagic-plastic/).

I am always stunned at peoples' willingness to refute apparent environmental idiocy just because they think they're smarter.

There are huge amounts of waste collecting all over the world; nowhere is pristine any longer. Fine, humans are basically a virus, me included.

But why not take steps to ameliorate the problem? Much has been done to create biodegradable plastics, but most people seem more concerned with not spending an extra $.25 USD on their 2 liter Mountain Dew rather than making a difference in the condition of the planet for the next 2 generations.

I guess the same mentality brought about the near extinction of the buffalo AND Native Americans, the near elimination of all top tier predators in the US (except in SoCal--Go Mountain Lions!!) so I shouldn't be surprised. I just wonder what sort of natural world my grandkids will grow to know.

This has accomplished its goal. I am now aware of this problem.

Just one bottlecap in one albatross' stomach would already be a shocking picture. This is so incredibly sad, and bad. Even if they survive, they might be in pain their whole life.
Toxins from earlier plastic already entered the foodchain (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch)
Maybe every nation in the world should send a ship to the area and start cleaning nonstop. They never get it clean but at least they would slow down the growth.

At the National Zoo they used to have a picture of a former seal's stomach after it died. It was full of pennies and other coins from people throwing them into the water.

I know some animals eat a few pebbles ocasionally to help with digestion. I don't know exactly what's going on here, but I don't think it's fake that a large number of albatross die from eating plastics.

Absolutely horrifying.

lol - neck-weights. I call b.s. and have told the artist such. As if that much plastic could exist in one bird. That much plastic is more than their body mass. How does one bird survive like two bottle caps - let alone twenty - to be able to die with that much plastic in the same place? Very hard to belive, mis-informative, and hurting the cause (which sounds genuine). Bloody irresponsible.

I would like to retract that comment. Upon further research it looks like a very serious issue. Thanks for the wake up call.

I might add that plastics also seem to play havoc on a biochemical level, affecting animal and human hormones.

On top of the mountains of trash humans have produced there's also the enormous amount of toxins we've spewed into the air and the unbelievable amount of chemicals we've spread on our lands and dumped into our oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. You think birds (and fish) ingesting plastic is bad, there's another killer that's even worse. Trillions of cigarette butts, tossed mindlessly by smokers, kill more animals (and fish and birds...) than anything else. Plastic is just a small part of the bigger equation. An equation that is becoming more and more difficult to solve with each passing day. After all the fish have been killed; after all the trees have been cut down; after all the soil has eroded away; after the air becomes unbreathable; when we humans are forced to eat our money; then will we understand? Or will we die with our bellies stuffed full of money like the plastic stuffed albatrosses on Midway Island. Unless we alter our current course, our fate will be the same as those poor albatrosses. Sorry for preaching/ranting, but I just can't help it. Earth is such a beautiful, unique, unbelievably complex planet and yet humans are simply hellbent on destroying it and everything on it. And I don't understand why. Well.. maybe I do...

When I get rid of plastic, I don't toss it on the beach or ground. I pay a fee so I can put it in a garbage bag (or recycle bin) and it is taken away. I have done my part, as I should. Its what I paid for. I can't help that the freaking LANDFILL and recycle factories lets this crap get where it shouldn't be somehow. The blame should fall on them NOT those who simply use plastic and dispose of it properly.
Regulations should be harsh, improper dumping fines large and recycling should be mandatory at ALL landfills. ALL types of plastic should be recycled and it shouldn't just be up to consumers to separate the various numbered types of plastic ahead of time and put them in bins for collecting. That should also happen at the landfill when garbage arrives. They need to stop whining about "contamination" (ie having to separate plastic from coffee grinds and rotten meat) and just freakin do it.
As for littering, i'd suggest bigger fines if caught, and again, the big companies out there mass-producing all these little plastic bits should realize a lot of its going to end up where it shouldn't (like plastic bottle caps) and maybe re-design their products a bit (like changing the lid so its a snap top instead.) even if that *gasp* costs them money.

Amazing how these birds' feathers either weigh many pounds each, or the place where they died never gets any wind or rain. Not a feather out of place, even the small curly ones. I call BS.

Amen, Burnt Sphere.

so called artist or environmentalist's have lied to get their point across. which cheapens the whole movement. sorry but looks like B.S. to me.

I don't care about those stupid birds. Extinction is part of evolution. If you can't get with the program then you die out. There are more important things to worry about than some insignificant species disappearing. I just threw my plastic bottle in the garbage (not recycling bin), i guess I'm evil now. Oh well.

Stomachs are stretchy. Baby birds are eating machines. Combine the volume of an expandable-and-already-large stomach with the crop (which is like a stretchy pre-stomach) and it's believable that so much garbage could wind up in a chick. After you feed a baby parrot, it will seriously look like it has a giant tumor growing out of its neck. It's disgusting. And they still scream for more.

This is just a suggestion from a non-scientist. Consider that many birds swallow rocks to help in grinding up food and helping digestion. Since we are talking about the seas where there are not many rocks, even on the islands, perhaps these birds are deliberately using the plastics as replacement for rocks. I doubt that the birds are stupid enough to mistake colored plastic for food...but they might see them as a substitute for rocks...which means that there really is nothing strange about this. The plastic caps often have ridged edges and could actually be good substitutes for rocks given the environment at sea. The assumption that this plastic kills them may actually be a result of our prejudice against ourselves that we are evil for creating plastic. Pictures don't always tell the full story and environmental scientists often jump to conclusions about the effect of technology upon the world. I'm just saying this may not be as bad as the alarmists are making it out to be. Besides, since Teddy Roosevelt, the US government was supposed to be there to protect these birds. Why aren't they doing it if this is such a bad problem?

How dumb is Kaz?