Spatial and Temporal Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on Spotted Seatrout and Red Drum Growth in the Gulf of Mexico

One of the most immediate fisheries concerns following the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010 was to what extent the productivity of recreational and commercial fisheries would be an impacted.  Our ongoing research focuses on this concern by comparing the growth of representative fish species collected from Louisiana before and after the DWH oil spill event, with additional comparison to a control area on the west coast of Florida that was not physically impacted to the same extent (i.e., following a Before-After-Control-Impact, or BACI, design).  Spatial and temporal changes in the age-specific growth of Spotted Seatrout and Red Drum was estimated prior to (2005-2009) and after (2010-2015) the DWH oil spill using growth increments in their otoliths. Relative changes in growth of 1 and 2 year old Spotted Seatrout and 1-3 year old Red Drum showed annual variability over the two time periods but no specific decrease in growth from the before-spill to the after-spill period. Effects of early- versus late-spawned and estuary-specific growth changes were explored for Spotted Seatrout.