Oil sticks to wildlife, thus creating a thick layer of sticky material on fur and feathers. Since oil floats to the surface of water, many animal species are vulnerable to the oil. The risk of hypothermia is dramatically increased in birds, seals, sea otters, and other marine mammals and birds. Oil destroys the natural insulation and waterproofing properties of fur in marine animals, which causes their metabolism to drop below functioning levels. Animals with oil affixed to them lose nearly all their mobility, making them highly susceptible to predators. Predators, however, are also affected by oil spills. Their organs can become damaged from the ingestion of the prey's oil into their body. The lungs and air passageways of predators are compromised, as well as their livers, immune systems, and blood cells.
Without the proper safety equipment such as suits, gloves, and respirators, humans are exposed to toxins in oil. The physical effects of the oil on humans isn't as drastic as the effects oil has on animals. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, oil could mildly irritate skin and lungs, and cause vomiting if accidentally ingested. Research is still ongoing to see if there are any long term effects of being exposed to oil that don't reveal themselves until many years later. According to Science Daily, the same cancer-causing chemicals in diesel fumes and cigarette smoke are found in the mix of oil and chemicals that reach the shoreline during oil spills.
Oil on a body of water's suface limits the photosynthesis procedures of marine plants and plankton. Plankton also serves as a temporary home for the eggs and larvae of fish, shellfish, sea bed and shoreline organisms. Oil can both damage plankton along with the eggs and larvae attached to them, reducing the number of organisms in the ecosystem. Tropical regions with swamps and marshes include trees which protect the coast, young animals, and other live specimen. Oil from the spill can smother a tree's roots, and penetrate the sediments. Destroyed trees will leave the swamp's habitants in danger of oil contamination,
