Bioaccumulation (pesticides) A Team Pickles Production By James Pickles

What is it? It’s a term for the accumulation of substances in an organism or part of an organism for example pesticides It occurs if the pesticide level is persistent It accumulates in the fatty tissues of the organism

Continued The level at which a substance accumulates depends on the rate of uptake (through the gills of a fish, contact with the skin) How quickly the substance is removed depends on the metabolic process, the lipid content of the organism and other environmental and physical factors

Continued The more hydrophobic a substance is the more likely it is to bioaccumulate If the pesticide level within an animal is high enough it can kill the animal The pesticide is passed on to other organisms when the ones with pesticides contained in the fatty tissues are eaten (biomagnification) The concentration of the pesticide is then increased as a predator will eat numerous of the prey

Biomagnification

Overcoming the Problem… To overcome the problem biodegradable pesticides should be used so they aren’t stored in the tissues of organisms