Gulf Oil Spill Research "Cornucopedia?"

What do you get when dozens of researchers from a variety of oceanic disciplines drop hundreds of pages of fresh research content on the Internet representing thousands of hours of field work...all in the space of a week?

Why that would be a veritable 
"Cornucopedia" of study material, and folks it is time to get busy with the answers to many of the questions we have been wondering about concerning the Gulf Oil Spill of 2010.

Of course the big answer, "did the oil spill have an impact?" is here in stark black and white.

Yes it did.

If you ask a BP rep/lawyer/evil incarnate baby eater the same question the answer will be vastly different and that, people, is why we have scientists to break it down for you.

But this work is absolutely no good to anyone unless it is read, dissemintaed, and talked about and that's where you come in. Now if you're some of the folks we know in the shark biz, forewarning this link contains big words and some numbers that go as high as 12, as in 12 pack beer. So you might want to wait until others have posted on Facebook pages with big glossy pictures of oiled seabirds so you can get angry, otherwise you'll just get lost with this stuff.

OK?

If you're the other folks we know in the shark biz, the majority, read on, and pay close attention to the next few months with fresh papers coming out concerning Whale sharks in the Gulf.

We hear tell this is going to be some interesting stuff. Then again we have been watching closely since this event broke in 2010 helping to drive the media where we could in response to these magnificent animals who, at the time, were migrating right through bands of oil.

For these animals it would appear they suffered greatly.

Gulf Coast Whale Sharks - Worst Fears Realized

When the Gulf oil platform exploded and sank we began ongoing whale shark coverage in the region on the 25th of April.

That coverage culminated in a first person interview with Dr.Hoffmayer from the Gulf Coast Research Lab on May 24th.

Our blog coverage lead the major media in the ongoing and salient Gulf whale shark story.

Read Whale Sharks - Prime Time.

Sadly, some of the worst fears of this team have been realized this week as Whale sharks have been seen in the most toxic areas of the Gulf oil region struggling to survive.

"Our worst fears are realized. They are not avoiding the spill area," said Eric Hoffmayer, the University of Southern Mississippi scientist who found the large aggregation last week. "Those animals are going to succumb. Taking mouthfuls of oil is not good. It is not the toxicity that will kill them. It's that oil is going to be sticking to their gills and everything else."

As with 90% of shark research stories this one is frustrating for one basic fact. Despite many requests for tag funding that might have allowed Dr.Hoffmayer and his team to fully understand the movements of these animals he was unable to secure the number of tags needed to get the work done. Now his work will be one of "intuitive guesswork" for the next few seasons as he and his team try and understand the effects of oil on these magnificent migratory animals.



Complete Story.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Bluefin Tuna Larvae Scientists Return from Gulf Loop Current Research Mission

THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI

Gulf Coast Research Laboratory

MEDIA ADVISORY

5/26/2010

Bluefin Tuna Larvae Scientists Return from Gulf Loop Current Research Mission

WHAT: Researchers Jim Franks and Dr. Bruce Comyns with the Southern Miss Gulf Coast Research Laboratory return from a 12-day research expedition to the Gulf of Mexico loop current to collect samples of larvae of the bluefin tuna, one of the ocean’s most threatened fish.

WHEN: Thursday, May 27, 10 a.m.

WHERE: Dockside at berth of RV Tommy Munro, Point Cadet Marina; Biloxi, Miss.

SPECIFICS: Funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, researchers traveled to the loop current to collect samples of larvae, which is the most vulnerable life-stage of bluefin tuna. Bluefin tuna spawn in only two places in the western hemisphere — the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. Bluefin tuna larvae are in a precarious situation due to the position and magnitude of the oil-affected waters following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the northern Gulf of Mexico.

Southern Miss President Martha Saunders has assembled an Oil Spill Response Team that is coordinating the university’s response to the incident in the Gulf. Scientists, faculty, staff and students from GCRL, Stennis Space Center, plus the Gulf Park and Hattiesburg campuses are working with federal, state, and private agencies to monitor the spill and, to the extent possible, manage and mitigate its impacts on the Gulf Coast.

For more information on the Oil Spill Response Team visit http://www.usm.edu/oilspill.

RESEARCH CONTACT: Chris Snyder: 228.365.3386.

www.usm.edu/gcrl

Gulf Oil Spill - Prime Time for Whale Sharks at Ground Zero

We spent some time with Dr. Eric Hoffmayer, shark biologist at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory and Dr. Joe Griffitt, aquatic toxicologist to discuss the current oil situation in the Gulf of Mexico.

Dr. Hoffmayer has tracked close to 300 whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) in the Gulf since 2002. He is the preeminent whale shark biologist of the region and has concerns for the seasonal migration of these animals, some of which have come from as far away as the Caribbean.

As many as one third of his tracked animals are estimated to be at "ground zero" the very place upwards to 70,000 barrels of oil are pouring into the Gulf and 500,000 gallons of COREXIT, a toxic dispersant, is being sprayed.

This map is an overlay of where the Gulf whale sharks most likely are and where the oil slick and dispersant is now.

"Most people have no idea we have whale sharks in the Gulf; it has been a terrific success story, we have just realized there are more animals out there then we originally thought, said Dr.Hoffmeyer, "Because the public is unaware of that, the issue of this oil spill and these animals is just not on the front burner. This is critical whale shark habitat."

"We're hoping that these whale sharks might sense the oil and move out of the area, we have seen other species of sharks closer to shore under a sheen of oil, but until we get out there and tag a few sharks we just do not know what's happening, or even if they are moving."

Dr.Hoffmeyer confirmed "This is the peak season for whale sharks in the Gulf: May through September."

Meanwhile, we asked Dr.Griffitt to comment on COREXIT a dispersant being widely used by BP and it's effects. "This stuff is designed to break up the oil into micro dropletts, the concern is where it goes from there through the water column. Smaller oil particles get taken up through the food chain very quickly. The fact is we're in uncharted territory, no one knows what these amounts of dispersed oil and COREXIT will do to bio accumulation."

"No one is talking about pelagic species right now in the media," said Dr.Hoffmeyer "or what this shower of smaller oil particles and dispersant might be doing to the wildlife - it will have a tremendous impact."

Dr.Hoffmeyer plans to have his team attempt to tag and track whale sharks this season. "We are linked with people doing aerial surveys right now and they report whale shark activity to us."

Dr.Griffitt pointed out "These smaller globules of oil will spend a lot of time in the ocean and once it mixes with dispersant this combo can be more toxic than the original substances, more study is needed."

Dr.Hoffmeyer is currently seeking funding from all sources to get an expanded tagging and tracking program in place for 2010. Those seeking to help can contact him directly at:

Dr.Eric Hoffmayer PhD
Gulf Coast research Laboratory
228.872.4257
Eric.Hoffmayer@usm.edu

His website will be updating whale shark activity as it comes in and as the 2010 migratory paths are known. We will keep you updated.