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The article reports on the impact of pesticides on invertebrates species that play essential role in marine ecosystems and food webs. According to Tim Verslycke, pesticides pose threats to crustaceans that humans love to eat such a lobster, crabs and shrimp. Verslycke and colleagues discovered that very low level of exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals have resulted in impaired embryonic development, molting and growth in marine crustaceans and the researchers also found low levels of pesticides in coastal waters, sediments and crustaceans.

The article reports on the disease afflicting the lobster shells in New England. The disease left lobsters susceptible to bacteria or viruses and interfered with their ability to molt their shells and grow and in extreme cases, the entire shell rotted, killing the lobsters. According to the researchers, the disease is not contagious from lobster to lobster, unlike other lobster diseases that leads to suspicion that physiological imbalances or compromised immune system may be impairing lobsters' ability to fight off the disease.