--- title: Study Seabirds Plastic Ingestion: 90% Have Consumed Plastic description: New research shows that 90% of seabirds around the world have ingested plastic as human production of the material has increased. canonical: https://time.com/4020046/birds-plastic-ingestion/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-09-02T15:42:05.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T10:38:27.962Z article:section: Science og:title: Study Says 90% of Seabirds Have Ingested Plastic og:description: Birds can confuse small pieces of plastic for fish eggs og:url: https://time.com/4020046/birds-plastic-ingestion/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76e8b8f07155244e/698861f935ba6f8342c0efa6/seagull.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: seagulls plastic og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Study Says 90% of Seabirds Have Ingested Plastic twitter:description: Birds can confuse small pieces of plastic for fish eggs twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76e8b8f07155244e/698861f935ba6f8342c0efa6/seagull.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Study Says 90% of Seabirds Have Ingested Plastic  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Sep 2, 2015 3:42 PM UTC  Coastal sound poll. File photo dated 16/07/14 of seagulls as the public are being asked to vote for their favourite coastal sound as part of a three-month by the British Library's Sound Archive. Issue date: Wednesday August 5, 2015\. See PA story ENVIRONMENT Sounds. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire URN:23745099 Coastal sound poll. File photo dated 16/07/14 of seagulls as the public are being asked to vote for their favourite coastal sound as part of a three-month by the British Library's Sound Archive. Issue date: Wednesday August 5, 2015\. See PA story ENVIRONMENT Sounds. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire URN:23745099Brian Lawless—PA Wire/AP  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Sep 2, 2015 3:42 PM UTC Plastic has long posed a threat to the environment, but new research shows the impact of the material on one particular kind of wildlife may be larger than previously thought. According to a [study](http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/08/27/1502108112) published this week in the journal _PNAS_, 90% of seabirds around the world have ingested plastic. Researchers reached their conclusion after evaluating 186 seabird species across the globe. The areas where plastic pollution has had the greatest impact include southern parts of the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Denise Hardesty, a researcher for an Australian federal agency, [told](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/whats-in-90-percent-of-seabirds-guts-1-word-plastics/2015/08/31/f0ad25d4-5012-11e5-b225-90edbd49f362%5Fstory.html?tid=hybrid%5Fcontent%5F3%5Fna) the Associated Press that birds confuse small pieces of plastic for fish eggs, a mistake that has contributed to the high ingestion rates. “They think they’re getting a proper meal but they’re really getting a plastic meal,” she said. For the new study, researchers evaluated plastic ingestion rates over time. Between 1962 and 2012, 29% of individual seabirds had plastic in their gut, according to the study. Researchers used information about the prevalence of plastic to determine that the figure has likely ballooned to 90%. A permanent policy solution to the problem seems far off as plastic production continues to increase. Researchers say that humans will produce as much plastic between 2015 and 2026 as had been produced in all previous years combined. 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