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Biomagnification: Toxins Get More Concentrated at Each Trophic Level
Biomagnification is the increase in concentration of a toxin at each successive trophic level up a food chain.
Definition
Biomagnification
Biomagnification is the increase in toxin concentration at each successive trophic level in a food chain.
Bioaccumulation and Biomagnification Are Not the Same Thing
- Bioaccumulation is the buildup of a toxin within a single organism over its lifetime.
- Biomagnification is the increase in toxin concentration between trophic levels, from prey to predator.
- In short, bioaccumulation happens inside one organism, while biomagnification happens across the food chain.
How Biomagnification Happens, Step by Step
- Pollutants enter the environment
- Toxins like DDT and methylmercury are released by human activities such as industry and agriculture.
- Producers absorb them
- Plants and algae take up the toxins from the water or soil.
- Herbivores accumulate them
