Comparison between the traditional Manta net and an innovative device for microplastic sampling in surface marine waters

Manta nets are commonly used for microplastics sampling although a number of limitations have emerged. In this study we compare the manta net to an innovative microplastic sampler, referred to as MuMi, registered as utility model. The results highlight the large variability that can exist in the outcomes of the different studies due to the lack of harmonization between methods and the differing factors such as sampling mesh size, representativeness or reproducibility of the sampling volumes. Control over the filtered volume is an issue to be improved in trawl sampling methods, while in the MuMi sampler the control over the sampling depth could be improved. Still, MuMi represents a highly advantageous sampling system in terms of ease of operation, lower cost, smaller microplastics target size and greater precision, all while maintaining the representativeness of the collected samples. •Comparison of the Manta net Vs a filtering device (MuMi) for microplastic sampling.•The abundance of microplastics varies up to two orders of magnitude.•The microplastic sampler measures accurately the filtered volume.•Reduced risk of contamination, and sample processing time are MuMi's advantages.•MuMi's 50 μm mesh contributed up to 64 % of the total microplastics collected.