Gulf Oil Spill "Not Over": Dolphins, Turtles Dying in Record NumbersReport warns that 14 species are still struggling from the 2010 disaster.

By Christine Dell'Amore, National Geographic

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V I E W I M A G E SA dead sea turtle lies in oil in Louisiana's Barataria Bay in 2010.P H O T O G R A P H B Y J O E L S A R T O R E , N A T I O N A L G E O G R A P H I C

Four years after the biggest oil spill in U.S. history, several species of wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico

are still struggling to recover, according to a new report released today.

In particular, bottlenose dolphins and sea turtles are dying in record numbers, and the evidence is

stronger than ever that their demise is connected to the spill, according to Doug Inkley, senior

scientist for the National Wildlife Federation, which issued the report. (See "Gulf Oil Spill: One Year

Later.")

The Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded on April 20, 2010, killing 11 people and spewing more than

200 million gallons (750 million liters) of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Since then, various government

agencies and nonprofits, including the National Wildlife Federation, have been studying the region's

wildlife to track the impacts of the oil.

V I E W I M A G E SA pod of bottlenose dolphins swim in the oily Chandeleur Sound, Louisiana, in 2010.

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The report, a compilation of published science since the spill, reveals that "the Gulf oil spill is far

from over," Inkley said.

"The oil is not gone: There is oil on the bottom of the Gulf, oil is washing up on the beaches, and oil

is still on the marshes," he said.

"I am not surprised by this. In Prince William Sound, 25 years after the wreck of Exxon Valdez,

there are still some species that have not fully recovered." (Related: "Oil From the Exxon Valdez

Spill Lingers on Alaska Beaches.")

However, BP, which operated the now-defunct oil well, claims that the report "is a piece of political

advocacy—not science.

"For example, the report misrepresents the U.S. government's investigation into dolphin deaths; as

the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's own Web site states, that inquiry is

ongoing," BP said in a statement provided to National Geographic.

"The report also conveniently overlooks information available from other independent scientific

reports showing that the Gulf is undergoing a strong recovery. Just this week, a study published by

Auburn University researchers found no evidence that the spill impacted young red snapper

populations on reefs off the Alabama coast."

Hit Hard

The report examined 14 species that live in the Gulf. Those include:

—More than 900 bottlenose dolphins have been found dead or stranded in the oil spill area since

April 2010. If you stretched the corpses lengthwise, that's 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) of dead

dolphins, Inkley said. Scientists know that is more than in previous years because they've been

recording deaths and strandings in the Gulf for a decade.

Ongoing research also shows that dolphins swimming in oiled areas are underweight, anemic, and

showing signs of liver and lung diseases. (Related: "U.S. Dolphin Deaths Rise to 300; Cause Still a

Mystery.")

A top predator like the dolphin falling ill is a sign that species further down the food chain are also

having trouble, Inkley said.

"When you have sick dolphins, it tells you there's a problem here and it needs to be investigated."

—There are five species of sea turtle that live in the Gulf, and all of them are listed as threatened or

endangered by the Endangered Species Act. About 500 dead sea turtles have been found in the spill

region every year since 2011—"a dramatic increase over normal rates," according to the NWF.

What's unknown is how many turtles died at sea and were never recovered by scientists.

—An oil chemical from the spill has been shown to cause irregular heartbeats in the embryos of

bluefin and yellowfin tuna. That's a critical stage of development for the fish, so there's a lot of

concern that the damage could cause heart attacks or deaths, Inkley said. (Related: "Odd Animal

Deaths, Deformities Linked to Gulf Oil Spill?")

—Loons, birds that winter on the Louisiana coast, are carrying increasing concentrations of toxic oil

compounds in their blood.

—Sperm whales that swam near the BP well have higher levels of DNA-damaging metals in their

bodies than in the past. The metals in their bodies, such as chromium and nickel, are the same ones

that were present in the well.

Long Way to Go

Overall, "we have a long way to go in understanding the full impact," Inkley said.

To that end, NWF and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will continue

monitoring wildlife in the oiled region—the latter is required to do so by the Oil Pollution Act.

Restoring the oiled ecosystems is a goal, Inkley said, but he added oil is tough to remove, especially

in marshes and in the deep ocean. That's why NWF is emphasizing prevention—in particular,

adopting alternative energy resources that are not carbon-based and won't cause oil spills.

"I'm still haunted by the 'walking dead' brown pelicans covered head to toe in the oil," added Inkley.

"We must not let this happen again."