Hello, I am Chris, a third year Life Sciences student at the National University of Singapore (NUS) minoring in aquatic ecology.
Before the circuit breaker was applied in Singapore, I visited the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum and looked at the Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) and Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) specimens on display. It was undeniably depressing to see that the first ever recorded visitation of these 2 rare creatures in Singapore’s territorial waters resulted in their deaths.
What caught my attention though was the variety of plastics found in the stomach of the sperm whale. While an April 2019 article (Tan, 2019) mentioned that the amount of plastic consumed was insufficient to cause death, plastic ingestion is known to kill sperm whales by rupturing their stomachs or causing starvation (de Stephanis et al., 2013). This is really sad news when we consider just how much of our trash is entering the oceans. As a student of ecology, I want to delve into the causes and impacts of aquatic pollution. I also intend to bring up possible ecological butterfly effects that may occur due to our wastes and pollution.
That said, I hope to raise awareness through this blog about aquatic pollution. I would like to take this educational journey with you to understand more about the pollution that plague our waters and more importantly, what we can all do to take steps towards cleaner waters!
Reference:
de Stephanis, R., Giménez, J., Carpinelli, E., Gutierrez-Exposito, C. and Cañadas, A., 2013. As main meal for sperm whales: Plastics debris. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 69(1-2), pp.206-214.
Tan, A., 2019. Dead whale Jubi Lee found in Singapore tells tale of scientific discovery. The Straits Times, [online] Available at: <https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/environment/dead-whale-jubi-lee-found-in-singapore-tells-tale-of-scientific-discovery#:~:text=The%20amount%20of%20plastic%20found,rupturing%20or%20blocking%20their%20guts%22.> [Accessed 24 June 2020].
