Abstract:

This data set represents collections taken by demersal longline fishing gears in the northern Gulf of Mexico and West Florida Shelf. They include station location information, standardized fish catch data (numbers, weights, sex, length), PAH contamination levels determined from sub-samples, and photographs of fishes with unusual external skin conditions that were observed in longline cruises undertaken between 2011 and 2014. The 2012-2014 data were collected during GoMRI/C-IMAGE sponsored cruises. Data from 2011 are included because they are the subject of two papers published with data from them: Murawski, S.A., W. T. Hogarth, E.B. Peebles, L. Barbieri. 2014. Prevalence of External Skin Lesions and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Concentrations in Gulf of Mexico Fishes, Post Deepwater Horizon. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 143:4,1084-1097 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00028487.2014.911205. Snyder, S.M., E. L. Pulster, D.L. Wetzel and S.A. Murawski. 2015. PAH Exposure in Gulf of Mexico Demersal Fishes, Post-Deepwater Horizon. Environmental Science and Technology (publ. online) http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b01870 More information about all data and photos can be found in the “Read Me” document included in the dataset.

Suggested Citation:

Steven Murawski. 2014. Lesion data from fish collected off Terrebonne Bay, LA to the Dry Tortugas, FL, 2011-2014.. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/N7GT5K56

Publications:

Snyder, S. M., Pulster, E. L., Wetzel, D. L., & Murawski, S. A. (2015). PAH Exposure in Gulf of Mexico Demersal Fishes, Post- Deepwater Horizon . Environ. Sci. Technol., 49(14), 8786–8795. doi:10.1021/acs.est.5b01870

Pulster, E. L., Gracia, A., Snyder, S. M., Deak, K., Fogelson, S., & Murawski, S. A. (2019). Chronic Sub-lethal Effects Observed in Wild-Caught Fishes Following Two Major Oil Spills in the Gulf of Mexico: Deepwater Horizon and Ixtoc 1. Deep Oil Spills, 388–413. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-11605-7_24

Purpose:

We surveyed offshore fish populations in the Gulf of Mexico in 2011 and 2012, following persistent reports of abnormal skin lesions and other pathologies in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The incidence of skin lesions in 2011 sampling was most frequent in some bottom-dwelling species along the continental shelf edge north of the Deepwater Horizon site. Longline surveys revealed that by 2012 the overall frequency of lesions in northern Gulf of Mexico (NGM) fishes in the vicinity of the Deepwater Horizon had declined 53%, with severity also declining. Relatively high concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) metabolites (up to 470,000 ng naphthalene equivalents/g bile wet weight), indicative of oil-related pollution, were found in fish bile in 2011; concentrations of summed PAHs measured in fish liver and muscle were relatively low (<35 ng/g) due to the efficient metabolism of these compounds by teleost fish. Significant declines in bile concentrations of naphthalene and phenanthrene metabolites in Red Snapper Lutjanus campechanus between 2011 and 2012 indicate an episodic exposure to elevated levels of hydrocarbons of petrogenic origin. The composition of PAH parent compounds and alkylated homologs in Red Snapper liver samples was highly correlated with oil collected at the Deepwater Horizon wellhead but was less coherent with other PAH sources in the NGM. The elevated 2011 prevalence of skin lesions in some NGM species was unrelated to surface salinity or temperature anomalies and was not the result of an epizootic observable in our histopathology samples but was positively correlated with PAH concentration. Thus, we fail to reject the null hypothesis that elevated skin lesion frequency is unrelated to PAH exposure from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Data Parameters and Units:

1. Catch data-- A. Disease Frequency: [D, DL, f, L, m,n], count of disease, % B. All Stations: vessel [Sea Fox, Brandy, pisces, sea fox, Weatherbird II], trasect [1-914, PCB-03, DSH-07, GP-2, GP-3], station, month (MM), day (DD), year (YY), species [shark, snapper, blackfin tuna, red grouper, Gulf smoothhound, gag, scamp, red porgy, amberjack, speckled hind, porgy, blueline tilefish, marbled moray, inshore lizardfish, clearnose skate, squirrelfish, remora, dolphinfish, grouper, great barracuda, Gulf hake, dogfish, tunny, flounder, scorpionfish, eel, cobia, sand perch, sea bass, mustelus, wenchman, king snake eel, tilefish, sharksucker, hardhead catfish, king mackerel, Almaco jack, blunthead puffer, Atlantic croaker, scorpionfish, bearded brotula, blue runner, silver seatrout, sea robin, snakefish, short spine dogfish, Atlantic cutlassfish, spider crab, bluntnose sixgill, little gulper, leopard toadfish, crevalle jack], specimen (count), disease [D, DL, f, L, m,n]. 2. Station data-- Vessel [sea fox, brandy, pisces, weatherbird II], Transect Station Latitude (decimal degrees), Longitude (decimal degrees), depth (feet), date (MM/DD/YYYY), time set out (hh:m), time zone [EST], Gear [Demersal Longline]. 3. Skin lesion QA-QC-- Picture Included? (X=yes), Vessel [sea fox, brandy I, brandy II, pisces I, pices II, pices III], Transect [1-15, 34, 914], Section [10, 20, 30, 40, 60, 80, 100], Number [1-6, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 17-25, 29, 31, 33-35, 37-39, 42, 45, 47-49, 51, 54, 60, 62, 65, 71, 80-82, 85, 90, 105, 110, 203], Species common name [Atlantic sharpnose shark, bearded brotula, black grouper, blackfin snapper, blacknose shark, bonito (little tunny), dolphinfish, gag, golden tile, golden tile (tilefish), great northern tile (tilefish), greater amber jack, gulf smoothhound (sm dogfish), king snake eel, mahi-mahi, pale spotted eel, red grouper, red porgy, red snapper, scamp, silk snapper, sm dogfish, sm dogfish (Gulf smoothhound), southern hake, spinycheek scorpion fish, yellow conger eel, yellowedge grouper, yellowtail bass (longtail bass)], Tissue [clasper skin, fin, skin], Histo (tissue for histology, Y/N), FWRI Histopath (Skin lesion designation following histopathological diagnosis) [DERMATITIS, EPITHELIAL HYPERPLASIA, EPITHELIAL HYPERPLASIA/ HEMORRHAGE, EROSION, EROSION (?ULCER), EROSION/DERMATITIS, EROSION/HEMORRHAGE, HEALED/INSIGN, HEALING, HEALING ULCER, HEALTHY/INSIGN, INSIGN/HEALED, LESION - NOT ULCER, LYMPHOMA, MECHANICAL, NO CODE, NONE, NORMAL/HEALED, PAPILLOMA, ULCER, ULCER, ULCER/DERMATITIS, ULCER/EROSION, ULCER/HEALING], Photo (of lesion taken in the field, Y/N), FWRI Photo Interpretation (Category of lesion from photo in absence of supportive tissue histology) [EROSION, NO CODE, PETECHIAE/INSIGN, ULCER, ULCER/HEALING], DATA FOR FWRI MAP [all verified skin lesions by histopathology or photography (columns 'H' and "J") are grouped as "lesion" (L)], USF HC FIELD (USF Health Code assigned in the field) [N, NO CODE, OTHER, P, T, U], USF FINAL DATA (USF Health Code. All lesions assigned as "U" (ulcer)), Trip date (MM/DD/YYYY).

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