Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
ENVIRONMENTAL GEOCHEMISTRY AND HEALTH OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL GEOCHEMISTRY AND HEALTH, cilt.48, ss.1-18, 2026 (SCI-Expanded)
This study was conducted to investigate
the presence of microplastics (MPs) in individuals
of Hyla orientalis and Hyla savignyi, two tree frog
species naturally distributed in Türkiye, to determine
the qualitative and quantitative distribution of these
particles in their gastrointestinal tracts (GITs) and to
analyze their morphological (color, shape, size) and
chemical (polymer type) properties in detail. A total
of 276 individuals were examined within the scope
of the research, 76 of which belonged to H. orien-
talis and 200 to H. savignyi. A total of 192 micro-
plastic particles were detected in their GITs, and the
average size of these particles was determined to be
206.56 ± 12.88 μm. The most common microplastic
type was PET (67.20%), its shape was fiber (76.00%),
and its color was navy blue (25.50%). The highest
proportion of microplastic-containing individuals
was observed in H. savignyi (56.50%), and micro-
plastic was found in only 11.84% of H. orientalis
individuals. No statistically significant difference was
found between the two species in terms of polymer
type, microplastic shape, and color (p > 0.05). Data
obtained from 24 different provinces across Türkiye
indicate that microplastic contamination has a wide
geographical distribution. The highest microplastic
amount was recorded from Hatay-Hassa (44 pieces),
followed by Kilis and Bitlis provinces. Significant
differences were found between provinces in terms
of color, shape, and polymer type (p < 0.001). These
findings suggest that microplastic pollution is wide-
spread in terrestrial vertebrates and may vary among
species and geographic regions, suggesting that
amphibians may be important bioindicators for moni-
toring ecosystem health