Report on Biopsy Collections from Specimens Collected from the Surrounds of the West Atlas Oil Leak - Fish Specimens

1. Skin swabs on four fish species did not indicate exposure to petroleum hydrocarbons. 2. Fish stomach contents indicate no ingestion of petroleum hydrocarbons. 3. Fish white muscle indicates no trace of petroleum hydrocarbons.4. During the oil spill, surface animals are more at risk of being affected by exposure to petroleum hydrocarbons than are deep sea fish. 5. It is imperative to commence a monitoring program of fish health during the oil spill, and continue monitoring after the oil leak has been solved

Comparison of biomarker responses following one dose of benzo-a-pyrene administered to three native Australian fish species

The Australian native fish pink snapper (Pagrus auratus Forster) is currently used as a bioindicator species for laboratory and field studies, but is often unavailable from hatcheries, or collected in limited numbers in the field. Consequently, mulloway (Argyrosomus hololepidotus Lacepede) and barramundi (Lates calcarifer Bloch), two Australian native fish species, were tested in an exploratory study as potential bioindicator surrogates to pink snapper. Experimental fish were i.p. injected with benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), a well known biomarker inducer in fish, at a dose of 1.0f. µg/g of fish. Physiological indices i.e. condition factor (CF) and liver somatic index (LSI) and a suite of biomarkers including ethoxyresorufin-0-deethylase (EROD) activity, biliary metabolites, serum sorbitol dehydrogenase (SOH), DNA damage (Comet assay) and heat shock proteins HSP 70 were explored in the three test species. Mulloway and barramundi showed a higher response in biliary metabolite levels than pink snapper, while pink snapper showed a higher EROD induction potential relative to mulloway and barramundi. Mulloway appeared to be sensitive to hepatotoxicants, as the chemical injury sustained by the liver resulted in the release of SOH in the bloodstream of this species. All three species were significantly responsive to DNA damage. When injected with BaP, the three species showed similar response for CF, LSI and HSP 70. Initial results indicate that mulloway and barramundi are suitable surrogate bioindicator species for pink snapper in relation to exposure to BaP

Montara Well Release: Report on necropsies from a Timor Sea horned sea snake

• One horned sea snake (Acalyptophis peronii) was collected in the Timor Sea on 29th September 2009 and transported to Curtin University for dissection and necropsy. • A total of five samples (1 muscle tissue sample, 1 gut content sample, 1 bile sample, 1 swab sample from skin and 1 swab from the inner lung ) were analysed for the presence of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs, by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detection) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs, by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry). • Expert examination of the chromatographic pattern produced in the TPH analysis allowed the qualitative assessment of whether the source of the compounds was petroleum hydrocarbons and/ or biological co-extractives (e.g., fatty acids, cholesterol). • The horned sea snake had petroleum hydrocarbons in its stomach contents but none in any other necropsies (muscle, skin, trachea, lung). This indicates exposure through prey ingestion. The absence of petroleum hydrocarbons in the trachea and in the lung suggests that inhalation of floating crude oil did not occur

Montara Well Release: Report on necropsies from birds collected in the Timor Sea

• Necropsies were collected from 16 birds (13 common noddy, 1 lesser frigatebird, 1 wedge-tailed shearwater, 1 brown booby) collected in the Timor Sea during and following the Montara well release. • A total of 72 samples (38 samples of lungs, breast tissue or gizzard contents, 32 swab samples from feathers and trachea, 2 bile samples) were analysed for the presence of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH - gas chromatography with flame ionisation detection) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH – gas chromatography-mass spectrometry). • Expert examination of the chromatographic pattern produced in the TPH analysis allowed the qualitative assessment of whether the source of the compounds was petroleum hydrocarbons and/ or biological co-extractives (e.g., fatty acids, cholesterol).• One common noddy (collected deceased) from the vicinity of the Montara incident had crude oil on its feathers, in its gizzard contents, in its lungs and in its breast tissue indicating significant exposure to crude oil. Since this bird was very decomposed upon receipt (thoracic cavity open and intestine missing) such exposure could have been pre- and/ or post-mortem. • One common noddy collected at Ashmore Reef had crude oil in its lungs but in no other samples (feather swab, trachea swab, breast tissue, gizzard). The fact that external swabs and intestinal tract samples were negative for the presence of crude oil suggests non-recent exposure. • The remaining 14 birds submitted for analysis had no signs of crude oil in the feathers, in the gizzard contents, in the lungs or in the breast tissues. • The majority of birds submitted for analysis appeared in poor physical condition and are likely to have died of natural causes

Montara Well Release: Olfactory analysis of Timor Sea fish fillets

This report was prepared by Christopher Rawson and Marthe Monique Gagnon from the Department of Environmental and Agriculture, Curtin University and Hannah Williams from the Food Science & Technology Program, School of Public Health, Curtin University. This report describes the results of the olfactory analysis of fish samples collected in the Timor Sea following the Montara well release. The olfactory analysis was conducted in March 2011, in the Sensory Evaluation laboratories located in the School of Public Health, Curtin University

Contaminant (PAHs, OCs, PCBs and trace metals) concentrations are declining in axial tissue of sand flathead (Platycephalus bassensis) collected from an urbanised catchment (Port Phillip Bay, Australia)

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. Concentrations of PAHs, OCs, PCBs and trace metals were determined in the white muscle of sand flathead Platycephalus bassensis collected at 6 locations in Port Phillip Bay during 2015. No PAHs, OCs or PCBs were detected in the white muscle of sand flathead at any of the locations, however measurable levels of As, Cu, Hg, Se and Zn were detected at all sites. Only As and Hg exhibited regional difference in white muscle concentrations, with As present only in a non-toxic organic form and Hg measured at levels that are comparable to levels reported in reference sites in other studies. All contaminants detected in the white muscle of sand flathead collected in Port Phillip Bay in 2015 were below Australian Food Standards guideline values, and by world standards, the Port Phillip Bay sand flathead population is considered minimally contaminated. Furthermore, tissue contaminant concentrations appear to be decreasing over time