Dr. Heather MasonjonesCarpenter, JennaSierra, Brianna2020-04-082020-04-082019Carpenter, Jenna, and Brianna Sierra. “The Impact of Microplastics on Crassostrea Virginica Filtration Efficiency.” Acta Spartae, 2019. https://doi.org/10.48497/XP2C-FQ23.http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11868/990Recommended Citation: Carpenter, Jenna, and Brianna Sierra. “The Impact of Microplastics on Crassostrea Virginica Filtration Efficiency.” Acta Spartae, 2019. https://doi.org/10.48497/XP2C-FQ23.There has been increasing concern among biologists about whether or not microplastics are affecting the health of marine organisms and humans. While some studies have shown microplastic effects on juvenile Crassostrea virginica (Eastern Oyster), there are few studies which focus on how adult Crassostrea virginica are affected. This experiment focuses on the ability of adult Crassostrea virginica to filter and dispose of different densities of fluorescent polyethylene microbeads obtained from Cospheric Innovations. Crassostrea virginicawere collected in Tampa Bay and once acclimated, were exposed to treatment concentrations of 0.167 microbeads mL-1 and 0.083 microbeads mL-1 (500 mm–600 mm) at a density of 1g cm-3 over a six hour time interval. An examination of adult oyster clusters exposed to different amounts of microbeads showed the adult oyster’s ability to take in microplastics. Microplastics were seen in higher amounts within the 0.167 microbeads mL-1 concentration, with a maximum of 52 microbeads observed. Some oysters filtered in microbeads, demonstrating the potential for microplastics to impact oyster health, specifically mass loss. This issue is prevalent in oyster populations and can impact higher trophic level organisms through bioaccumulation. These results demonstrate the issues associated with microplastics and encourage future research to be conducted.en-USMicroplasticsResearch Subject Categories::NATURAL SCIENCESCrassostrea virginicaEastern OysterBay ecology--Florida--Tampa Bay RegionArticlehttps://doi.org/10.48497/xp2c-fq23