Lingering Oil: Bioavailability and Effects of Prey and Predators. 'Exxon Valdez' Oil Spill Restoration Project Final Report

摘要

Sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in the most heavily oiled areas of western Prince William Sound have not recovered from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS), based on estimates of otter abundance and survival rates, and increased induction of the biomarker for aromatic hydrocarbons, cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A). Exposure of sea otters to lingering oil appears to be a likely mechanism explaining lack of full recovery. This study was initiated to obtain further information on oil exposure, using the cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A) biomarker and gross and histological observations of the liver, and to examine relations between CYP1A levels and residual oil along shorelines in areas occupied by the sea otters.