Oil Spill Aftermath: Why Baby Dolphins May Be Rare in Gulf Waters

Bottlenose dolphins swimming in waters affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill are dying earlier and birthing fewer calves than dolphins living in other areas, a new study shows. Just 20 percent of pregnant dolphins in Barataria Bay — a part of the Gulf of Mexico that was most heavily tainted by oil from the spill — gave birth to surviving calves, much lower than the 83 percent success rate in other dolphin populations, the researchers found. In addition, just 86.8 percent of the Barataria Bay dolphins survive every year.