SGER: Monitoring the Effects of the January 17, 2001 Oil Spill on Galapagos Marine Iguanas

2001年1月17日，世界自然遗产厄瓜多尔的加拉帕戈斯群岛发生了一次中等规模的石油泄漏。虽然很少有动物被立即杀死，但人们强烈关注对当地野生动物的长期影响。特别是像海鬣蜥（Amblyrhynchus cristatus）这样的长寿物种，为研究环境污染的潜在慢性影响提供了理想的模型系统。海鬣蜥以潮间带藻类为食，因此高度暴露于水生污染物。我有14年来受影响最严重的海鬣蜥种群的生理和人口数据，在圣达菲岛。此外，作为我最近的野外项目的一部分，我收集了环境压力（血浆皮质酮水平）、藻类质量和消化系统内共生体的基线数据，这些数据持续到漏油前两天（2001年1月17日）。充足的溢油前数据也可用于厄尔尼诺、拉尼娜和“常规”季节。为了量化油污的影响，我建议在漏油后3个月、6个月和9个月立即测量以下参数：1)基线和应激诱导的皮质酮水平，2)血细胞计数，3)后肠内共生微生物的活性，4)站立藻类作物，以及5)单独标记动物的存活率。此外，一名厄瓜多尔助理将在查尔斯·达尔文研究站对圈养的海鬣蜥进行模拟石油泄漏的实验。该实验也将允许我们测试用未受影响的同种生物的微生物重新接种油海鬣蜥后肠的可行性。我详细的泄漏前数据将使我能够量化严重环境扰动的行为和生理后果。这些数据对于加拉帕戈斯群岛的保护和政策措施非常重要，而且对全球保护问题也有科学意义。

On January 17, 2001, a medium size oil spill hit the Galapagos islands, Ecuador, a Natural World Heritage site. Although few animals were killed immediately, there is strong concern about the long-term impacts on the endemic wildlife. Long-lived species, like the marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus) in particular, offer ideal model systems to study potential chronic effects of environmental pollution. Marine iguanas forage on intertidal algae and are therefore highly exposed to water-borne pollutants. I have 14 years of physiological and demographic data for the marine iguana population most strongly affected, on Santa Fe island. Furthermore, as part of my most recent field project, I collected baseline data on environmental stress (plasma corticosterone levels), algae quality and digestive endosymbionts up to two days before the oil spill (Jan 17, 2001). Ample pre-oil spill data are also available for El Nino, La Nina and 'regular' seasons. To quantify the impacts of oiling I propose to measure the following parameters immediately, 3 months, 6 months and 9 months after the spill: i) baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels, ii) blood cell counts, iii) activity of hindgut endosymbiontic microbes, iv) standing algae crop, and v) survival rates of individually marked animals. Furthermore, an Ecuadorian assistant will conduct an experiment simulating an oil spill on captive marine iguanas at the Charles Darwin Research Station. This experiment will also allow us to test the feasibility of re-inoculating the hindgut of oiled marine iguanas with microbes from unaffected conspecifics. My detailed pre-spill data will allow me to quantify behavioral and physiological consequences of a severe environmental perturbation. These data will be immensely important for conservation and policy measures in Galapagos but will also be scientifically useful for global conservation issues.