Oil damaging sargassum in Gulf

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Scientists are worried about the effect the oil will have on estuaries, but they're also worried about how oil will affect sargassum.

Some people think seaweed is nothing more than a nuisance that washes up on the beach during your vacation. However, sargassum plays a very valuable role in the Gulf's ecosystem.

Sargassum, a type of brown seaweed, is a floating habitat and nursery ground for a number of aquatic species, including mahi-mahi, tuna, marlins, blue crabs, and bill fish.

"It really plays the same role that our grass beds and marshes do in the estuaries except for a different assemblage of species," said Dr. Bob Shipp, Chair of the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of South Alabama.

Dr. Shipp said sargassum is soaking up oil like a sponge.

"Sargassum is very fragile. It needs clear water, it needs sunlight, and the oil will inevitably kill it," said Dr. Shipp.

That means there will be no protection, no place to lay eggs, and in some cases no nourishment for the fish and aquatic life that depend on it.

Dr. Shipp said he doesn't think the Gulf will ever be the same, as sargassum cannot be recreated by man.

"I think we're going to see a major ecosystem shift in the Gulf," he said.

Dr. Shipp said if species are resilient, and if their habitat is preserved, they will rebound. But if their habitat is lost, he believes it'll be years before it returns, if it does at all.