00:00Microplastics are everywhere. Researchers have found them in water sources in the most remote areas of the world.
00:05Meanwhile, doctors have found them in the tissue of living organisms, including in humans.
00:10However, one group of tiny creatures seems immune to the plastic problem,
00:13even in waters that are absolutely inundated with micro- and nanoplastic particles.
00:18The analysis looked at several creatures, including nematodes, seed shrimps, crustaceans, and tardigrades,
00:24finding that the tardigrades were the only ones that seemed impermeable to the tiny plastic particles.
00:29With the researchers writing,
00:30The absence of microplastic ingestion by tardigrades likely links to the structure of their feeding apparatus,
00:36which includes a mouth tube with a stylet used to pierce and suck, rather than ingest prey organisms whole.
00:42Still, they did observe the near-microscopic creatures sporting plastic bits on their exteriors, specifically on their legs.
00:48The study also observed the first-ever evidence that flatworms and hairybacks have consumed microplastics,
00:54with the researchers outlining that microplastics are a serious ecological threat,
00:58essentially from the bottom of the food chain all the way to the top.
