absorb toxins through their roots and leaves. Animals and humans are always exposed to chemicals by the air we breathe, things we touch, and what we put in our mouth. Animals and humans can also eat other animals or plants that are already poisoned, which will continue the spread of chemicals, which is referred to as secondary poisoning Effects on individuals and entire population Direct effects – direct consumption of a toxin or something that has been contaminated with a toxin by breathing, eating, or drinking. Developmental and reproductive problems Indirect effects – organisms directly affected by the loss of food, which has declined due to toxins. Sublethal effects – toxins or compounds that do not induce significant mortality but make the organism sick or make it change its behavior Increased sensitivity to toxicants when additional environmental stressors are present With chronic use of pesticides, this runs the risk of causing abnormalities in chromosome structure in humans, as well as affecting the reproduction, nervous and cardiovascular system of any animals exposed. The genetics can be affected by toxicant exposure, direct changes can occur to the DNA, and if not repaired, the changes can lead to the appearance mutations Contaminants can modify the distribution of individuals in a population, effective population size, mutation rate and migration rate Effects of ecotoxicity on a community Predator-prey relationships – either the predator is affected by the toxin resulting in a decline of predator population and thus increasing the prey population; or the prey population is affected by the toxin resulting in a decline in the prey population that, in essence, will cause a decline in the predator population due to lack of food resources Community ecotoxicology studies the effects of all contaminants on patterns and species abundance, diversity, community composition, and species interactions. Communities that rely heavily on competition and predation will have a difficult time responding and thriving in disturbances from contaminants. A community that is species-rich will have a better chance recovering from an exotoxin disturbance, rather than a community that is not species-rich. A species could be easily wiped out to the expense of a contamination from foreign chemicals. Protecting distinct community levels, such as species richness and diversity is essential for maintaining a healthy, well-balanced ecosystem Overall effects Chemicals are shown to prohibit the growth of seed germination of an arrangement of different plant species. Plants are what make up