The Iberian trumpet rat looks like an evolutionary accident, with greasy, rat-like hair and basically nonfunctional eyes on an elongated snout that appears true to the species’ name.
The aquatic creatures, found in parts of northern Spain, use these oddly shaped snouts a little like snorkel tubes. But research has now found that endangered Iberian trumpet rats (Galemys pyrenaicus) are hoovering up a huge amount of synthetic material, mostly from clothing, as they forage for insect prey in their supposedly pristine freshwater streams.
Researchers found a third of fecal samples they analyzed contained synthetic fibers in upland streams. They believe the creatures are ingesting this pollution as they eat aquatic insects and other invertebrates.
The researchers say this discovery rings alarms bells about pollution in supposedly pristine upland streams in the mountains of northern Spain. If trumpet rats are ingesting this material, likely other species are as well. There are also potential health concerns for the species.
“Further research should assess the ecological and physiological impacts of exposure in this and similar species and monitor plastic loads and similar debris in upstream habitats,” they wrote in the study.
