"Beachgoers have been extra vigilant for lingering impacts from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster along our shorelines and in the Gulf of Mexico. This past weekend photos and a video began circulating through social media of clusters of hundreds of so-called “sea slugs” washing onshore dead and dying along the National Seashore and portions of Pensacola Beach. This fueled speculation that these marine creatures could be the latest victims of the BP oil spill or something else. Oddly enough, lying on the beach in their shriveled-up state they even look like the brownish-black BP tar blobs that washed up in the months after the oil spill. Trisha James of Navarre shot and posted the video. She was so concerned, she contacted Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. “I have received feedback from friends, and they said they have never seen anything like it.” she said. But University of West Florida marine biologist Christopher Pomory said the die-off of the sea creatures is no cause for alarm. “This time of the year, oftentimes, there are two or three common sea hares that are washing up,” he said. “The oil spill is not causing the die-off.” With the recent rough seas and strong currents churning up the Gulf’s floor, it’s common to see dead marine animals wash up in clusters, along with sea grass and sea weed, as these are doing now, he said."
Posted on: Tue, 27 Aug 2013 11:08:48 +0000