"NEW ORLEANS -- After months of laboratory work, scientists say they can definitively finger oil from BP's blown-out well as the culprit for the slow death of a once brightly colored deep-sea coral community in the Gulf of Mexico that is now brown and dull."

"In a study published Monday, scientists say meticulous chemical analysis of samples taken in late 2010 proves that oil from BP PLC's out-of-control Macondo well devastated corals living about 7 miles southwest of the well. The coral community is located over an area roughly the size of half a football field nearly a mile below the Gulf's surface.

The damaged corals were discovered in October 2010 by academic and government scientists, but it's taken until now for them to declare a definite link to the oil spill."

The Associated Press had the story March 26, 2012. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Gulf Dolphins Exposed to Oil Are Seriously Ill, Agency Says" (Green/NYT) [3]

"BP Oil Spill’s Sticky Remnants Wash Up Sporadically On Gulf Beaches" (National Geographic) [4]

"Study by NOAA and Partners Shows Some Gulf Dolphins Severely Ill" (NOAA) [5]

"Barataria Bay Dolphins Severely Ill" (Mother Jones)
[6]