Oil, Residues Producing Genetic Liver Damage, Hatch Failure In Killifish, Keystone GOM Fish Species

[hatrack]

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Oil buried in sediments in the shallow waters of the Gulf is triggering genetic reactions in the gills and livers of local populations of killifish, a ubiquitous prey for marine species vital to the region's economy, according to a study published this week in the review Environmental Science & Technology. Researchers linked those genetic changes to cardiovascular problems, reproductive failures and weakened and listless offspring.

“The animals are simply not hatching,” said Fernando Galvez, an environmental toxicologist from Louisiana State University, who led the study. “The ones that go on to hatch are smaller and have very little vigor.”

An otherwise hardy and ubiquitous fish adapted to the shifting conditions of the Gulf of Mexico, the killifish may be signaling a critical weakness in the maritime food chain, according to the researchers.

“It’s a canary in a coal mine; These guys don’t move around much,” said Galvez. “All of those fish we like to eat, eat the killifish,” said Andrew Whitehead, an environmental toxicologist from UC Davis, and a co-author of the study.

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http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-gulf-oil-spill-fish-20130502,0,6888111.story