(
2007)
Culbertson, Jennifer B.; Valiela, Ivan; Peacock, Emily E.; Reddy, Christopher M.; Carter, Anna; VanderKruik, Rachel
In September 1969,the Florida barge spilled 700,000 L of No. 2 fuel oil into the salt
marsh sediments of Wild Harbor (Buzzards Bay, MA). Today the aboveground
environment appears unaffected, but a substantial amount of moderately degraded petroleum
still remains 8 to 20 cm below the surface. The salt marsh fiddler crabs, Uca pugnax, which
burrow into the sediments at depths of 5 to 25 cm, are chronically exposed to the spilled oil.
Behavioral studies conducted with U. pugnax from Wild Harbor and a control site, Great
Sippewissett marsh, found that crabs exposed to the oil avoided burrowing into oiled layers,
suffered delayed escape responses, lowered feeding rates, and lower densities. The oil
residues are therefore biologically active and affect U. pugnax populations. Our results add new knowledge about long-term consequences of spilled oil, a dimension that should be included when assessing oil-impacted areas and developing management plans designed to
restore, rehabilitate, or replace impacted areas.