GoMRI eNews · Jul 9, 2019 · ← All issues
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Keeping you current on emerging Gulf science and the people investigating the effects of oil spills on the environment and public health.

July 9, 2019                                                                    GoMRI eNews

Stories

Study Finds Oil Impacts on Fiddler Crabs May Also Affect Broader Marsh Health

Scientists conducted mesocosm experiments to explore how crude oil affects marsh-dwelling fiddler crabs, classified as ecosystem engineers or bioturbators. The researchers tested impacts of various oil concentrations to mimic light (L) to heavy (H) oiling scenarios, with fiddler crabs experiencing more acute impacts at higher oil concentrations and less at lower concentrations.

How Grad Student Niles Gets to Know Crude Oil at a Molecular Level

When an oil slick is exposed to sunlight, photo-oxidation processes break the oil down and incorporate oxygen into the petroleum molecules.

Study Finds Dispersed Oil, But Not Oil Alone, Negatively Affects Phytoplankton

Scientists conducted mesocosm experiments to examine how oil and chemically-dispersed oil affect Gulf of Mexico phytoplankton. Exposure to oil alone did not impair phytoplankton growth or their photosynthesis ability, nor did it significantly change the community’s diversity.

From the Archives

Study Evaluates Short-Term Oil Toxicity in Deep-Sea Crustaceans

Posted on June 26, 2018
Researchers conducted 48-hour toxicity experiments on deep ocean crustaceans (200 – 1000 m depth) to determine the impact threshold levels for one polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH, 1-methylnaphthalene) under various environmental conditions.

Study Identifies Oil Carbons Associated with Deepwater Horizon in Terrestrial Birds

Posted on June 27, 2017
Scientists analyzed the carbon composition in Seaside Sparrow tissues to learn if oil from the 2010 spill was incorporated into the terrestrial food web. The researchers found reduced radiocarbon and stable carbon concentration levels in the feathers of birds captured at oiled sites compared with birds from non-oiled sites, which is consistent with a fossil oil source.

Identifying Effective, Food-Grade Dispersants for the Future

Posted on July 5, 2016
Oil spill responders currently have the option to treat oil spills with a synthetic dispersant called Corexit, however scientists continue to search for alternatives. In this search, scientists seek to develop an understanding of the specific mechanisms that drive dispersion and identify an effective combination of food-grade components.

Publications
Study Reports Damselfish Near Oil Platforms and Artificial Reefs Off Alabama Coast
First record of the non-indigenous Indo-Pacific damselfish, Neopomacentrus cyanomos (Bleeker, 1856) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Bennett, C.; Robertson, A.; Patterson, W. BioInvasions Records 8(1): 154–166, https://doi.org/10.3391/bir.2019.8.1.17

Study Advances Understanding of How Air-Sea Fluxes Affect Ocean Circulation
Stability and sea state as limiting conditions for TKE dissipation and dissipative heating. Smith, A.W.; Haus, B.K.; Zhang, J.A. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 76, 689–706, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-18-0142.1

Data
Dataset for: A 3D printed centrifugal microfluidic platform for solid-phase-extraction and fluorescent detection of spilled oil in water -- data link

Data collected to analyze the burst frequency of each valve tested to achieve accurate sequential control of micro-valving system -- data link

CTD/Rosette data collected aboard the R/V Point Sur cruise PS16-20 in the Mississippi Bight, Gulf of Mexico from 2016-03-30 to 2016-04-10 -- data link

Announcements
Save-the-Date August 13 Sea Grant Seminar on Overlooked Species
The Sea Grant Oil Spill Science Outreach Team is planning a new seminar that will focus on species that media often overlook during a spill and those species' potential roles in guiding restoration efforts. The August 13 seminar will be held at the Southeast Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges Complex in Lacombe, Louisiana. It will also be live-streamed. More information soon available here. 

Project Activities
CARMMHA Screens Dispatches 2 Documentary at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo
Consortium researchers gathered in the Great Bear Wilderness classroom for a showing of Dispatches from the Gulf 2. They answered questions from an audience of ~160 zoo patrons, employees, volunteers, and members of the public about how the Deepwater Horizon oil spill impacted marine mammals and their habitats.
 
RECOVER Tuesday Tool Profile Features Fish Tracking
Ph.D. student Alexis Khursigara uses LoliTrack software to track zebrafish’s movements around a tank as a measurement of behavior. Her observations will help explore how crude oil affects fish’s behavior and ability to learn.