|
News Release: 4/29/10
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
In a continuing effort to provide additional baseline information prior to anticipated oil spill exposure, the Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Mississippi Laboratory have launched a joint effort to obtain tissue and community samples from the area of Dauphin Island, Alabama through Chandeleur Sound off the east coast of Louisiana.
The Fishery Ecology Program (FEP) at the Richard C. Shelby Center for Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management is conducting a reef community collection between Orange Beach, Al. and Fort Morgan aboard a contracted long line vessel while The R/V E.O. Wilson is carrying out bottom fishing stations both offshore and within eastern Mississippi Sound while the R/V Alabama Discovery is obtaining trawl collections and plankton samples along the same tracks.
In addition, three smaller boats have been dispatched to characterize grassbed resources from Little Lagoon in FL to Grand Bay, AL. The grassbeds along with oyster reefs are generally considered to be the most vulnerable habitats because they are both highly productive and the most difficult to restore if impacted by the oil spill.
Community samples will be analyzed at DISL while fish collected will be analyzed by the NMFS laboratory as a baseline for seafood safety issues that may emerge from the anticipated exposure. Eggs and larval samples collected yesterday will be managed by the Fisheries Oceanography of Coastal Alabama (FOCAL) Program at the Shelby Center. Baseline water samples were obtained at sites from Mobile Bay south 20 and 35 miles and will be analyzed for hydrocarbon levels. It is important to have some idea of what was present before any possible contamination.
Articles in Print:
Volunteer Information:
Links to relevant articles and sites:
|
