© via Flickr user Visit St. Pete/ClearwaterNew research has linked the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill to the deterioration of dolphin health in the region of the Gulf of Mexico that received heavy and prolonged oil exposure. A dolphin is pictured in the Gulf of Mexico.
A study conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Cornell University tested approximately 30 bottlenose dolphins in Louisiana's Barataria Bay, revealing the cetaceans to be in less than ideal states of health when compared to dolphins tested at a control site in Florida's Sarasota Bay.
The researchers found half of the dolphins in Louisiana to be in a "guarded or worse" condition, and several of them were not expected to survive. Compared to the control group, the Barataria Bay dolphins were five times more likely to have moderate to severe lung diseases and suffered uncommon hormonal abnormalities.
Cornell University researchers conducted the hormonal tests in 2011, but they were not made aware of the origin of the dolphins included in the study.
"We observed uncommon disease conditions in Barataria Bay dolphins consistent with petroleum hydrocarbon exposure," said Ned Place, an associate professor at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine.
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