Whereas early life-stages of a variety of fish species are known
to be sensitive to PAH compounds, there is a need to further explore
these effects under realistic exposure conditions and on stocks from
the European Arctic. This paper presents results from experimental
studies of naturally spawned Barents Sea capelin eggs exposed to
different concentrations of the WSF of crude oil. The set-up mimics
the natural weathering process of oil in sediment using Kobbe crude
oil collected from an exploration well drilled at the Goliat field. In
addition, a model compound, the four-ring PAH pyrene, was tested
in order to produce toxicity data for risk assessment models. Vital
rates (mortality-, and hatching) and developmental deformations
were monitored throughout the incubation period and at hatch. A
detailed histomorphological study of newly hatched capelin larvae
from control and exposed groups were carried out in order to reveal
possible sublethal effects in exposed individuals.