By Derica Williams
Photojournalist: Guy Turnbow
Updated: Thursday, 17 Jun 2010, 12:36 PM EDT DAUPHIN ISLAND, Alabama (WALA) – Scientists at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab said the spewing oil and dispersants are causing major damage at the bottom of the Gulf. The sea lab has been a source of education and research for decades. Now that millions of gallons of crude oil are polluting parts of the Gulf of Mexico, the research there has intensified. “We have a very complete picture of what the ecosystem south of Dauphin Island looks like. We have video pictures of fish, samples from top to bottom, we know everything that lives there in great quantitative details,” Director Dr. George Crozier said. Crozier said scientists are out in the water documenting, comparing and assessing the impact. “We found that the dissolved oxygen levels were dramatically low, I would presume that is a result of the oil spill material,” Crozier added. Red snapper and grouper are some of the fish found in the Gulf of Mexico. But Dr. Crozier said he’s not too worried about the grown fish, he’s worried about the ones that haven’t hatched yet. “The fish this size out there in the Gulf are not going to accumulate these toxins. They’re not eating these things, if they are, it will be in their stomach or liver and we don’t eat that. It can happen, but that will be a long-term issue of years of accumulation of toxins into the edible fish population. There’s a short term fear that they’re killing the eggs in larvae stages in this year’s crop of fish,” explained Crozier. …

Scientists study oil impact on sealife