Hidden problems in secret corals: Exploring Microplastic Abundance in Local, Temperate Corals Along an Urban Gradient.

Dr. Randi Rotjan, Research Assistant Professor at Boston University in the Biology Department and in the Boston University Marine Program. Summary: Microplastics (<5mm) are a recognized threat to aquatic food webs, and examination of their ingestion / egestion dynamics is an active and growing field of study. We explored these dynamics in a coastal, temperate, urban coral on the US East Coast in wild corals, and also conducted lab experiments to explore feeding preference, microplastic localization, and subsequent consequences of microplastic ingestion. In the end, the million dollar question remains: how do we measure this mess? And this temperate, urban coral may help provide the answer. Bio: Dr. Randi Rotjan is a global change biologist and a Research Assistant Professor at Boston University in the Biology Department and in the Boston University Marine Program. She received a B.S. from Cornell University, a Ph.D. from Tufts, and did her postdoctoral work at Harvard. She was an Associate Research Scientist at the New England Aquarium for 8 years, where she simultaneously held positions at UMass Boston and the Smithsonian Institution. She is the co-Chief Scientist of the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) Conservation Trust, where she leads the science program for the worlds’ largest and deepest UNESCO World Heritage Site, fully closed to all commercial extractive activities. Rotjan is also the founder and co-Chair of the PIPA Scientific Advisory Committee. At BU, she teaches Marine Urban Ecology, Evolutionary Ecology, Marine Biology, and Coral Reef Dynamics. She is a member of Women Working for Oceans (W2O) and the Explorers Club. She lives in the Boston area with her two sweet children, awesome husband, and a yard full of native plants.