Abstract/Summary

Microplastics (MPs) are defined as diverse plastic fragments smaller than 5 mm in size. They are ingested by aquatic organisms at various trophic levels and stages of development, including freshwater invertebrates and fish. Microplastics are highly abundant in freshwater environments worldwide and yet we know little about their impact on biodiversity, movement through the food chain, ability to change community composition and alter predator-prey interactions. Many of these questions remain unanswered, with studies tending to focus on toxic effects in laboratory settings. Although there are studies to investigate the occurrence and abundance of MPs in freshwater environments including rivers and lakes, relatively few have looked at the impact in tropical ecosystems or with organisms found therein. This chapter will review research on MPs in freshwater systems, highlighting tropical waters where research has been undertaken. The chapter will include a review and comparison of detection and quantification methodology with some practical suggestions and recommendations for future work.