This study sought to evaluate the microbiological quality of water from the various locations where specimens of the oysters Crassostrea sp. were harvested in Cananéia estuary, as well as of the bivalve itself, through values of coliforms based on the Multiple Tube Technique. During the period from 2005 to 2011, samples of water were collected at ten points. The water analysis presented a geometric mean of thermotolerant coliforms of 24.67 MPN 100 mL-1 and, in the soft tissues of the oysters, of 15.53 MPN g-1. There was a significant difference between the locations analyzed as to the density of total and thermotolerant coliforms in water. After analysis of the variations of bacterial counting with regard to seasonal mean, autumn presented the highest mean numbers of coliforms in oysters, and most data were collected in April. There was a positive correlation between the coliforms found in water and those in the oyster.
total and thermotolerant coliforms; estuary; microbiology contamination; shellfish harvesting
