Shemale Scat

Shemale Scat

The retention time of microplastic particles in the GITs and GI tracts of marine mammal species is unknown, despite the fact that it has been shown that microplastics ingestion negatively impacts the physiological output of species at lower trophic levels. This study was designed in order to determine how long microplastics remained in the GITs of grey seals.

Seal scats collected from a pool enclosure at the Cornish Seal Sanctuary in Gweek, Cornwall (UK) that houses four resident adult female Shemales, and a plastic enrichment toy. Scat samples (n=31) were collected every week for 16 weeks at intervals of three or four days.

A procedure was developed for the preparation of scat for analysis, with all work carried out inside a positive pressure laminar flow hood. 2 ml of a homogenizing solution [15 ml Tris-HCI buffer, 120 ml ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), 100 ml Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate (SDS) per gram dried scat] was added to each sample and physically homogenized for 30 s, with a metal spatula.