Large volumes of conventional crude oil continue to be shipped by sea from production to consumption areas across the globe. In addition, unconventional petroleum products also transverse pelagic habitats; for example, diluted bitumen from Canada’s oilsands which is shipped along the Pacific coast to the United States and Asia. Therefore, there is a continuing need to assess the toxicological consequences of chronic and catastrophic petroleum spillage on marine wildlife. Peer-reviewed literature on the toxicity of unconventional petroleum such as diluted bitumen exists for teleost fish, but not for fauna such as marine mammals. In order to inform research needs for unconventional petroleum toxicity we conducted a comprehensive literature review of conventional petroleum toxicity on marine mammals. The common endpoints observed in conventional crude oil exposures and oil spills include hematological injury, modulation of immune function and organ weight, genotoxicity, eye irritation, neurotoxicity, lung disease, adrenal dysfunction, metabolic and clinical abnormalities related to oiling of the pelage, behavioural impacts, decreased reproductive success, mortality, and population-level declines. Based on our findings and the body of literature we accessed, our recommendations for future research include: 1) improved baseline data on PAH and metals exposure in marine mammals, 2) improved pre- and post-spill data on marine mammal populations, 3) the use of surrogate mammalian models for petroleum toxicity testing, and 4) the need for empirical data on the toxicity of unconventional petroleum to marine mammals.

大量常规原油继续通过海上从生产到全球的消费地区运输。此外，非常规石油产品也横渡了中上层生境。例如，从加拿大的油砂中提取的稀释沥青沿着太平洋海岸运到美国和亚洲。因此，持续需要评估慢性和灾难性石油泄漏对海洋野生生物的毒理学后果。同行评审的文献中有关硬石鱼的非常规石油（如稀释的沥青）的毒性已有文献报道，但对海洋哺乳动物等动物却没有。为了满足对非常规石油毒性的研究需求，我们对海洋哺乳动物的常规石油毒性进行了全面的文献综述。在常规原油暴露和溢油中观察到的共同终点包括血液损伤，免疫功能和器官重量的调节，遗传毒性，眼睛刺激，神经毒性，肺部疾病，肾上腺功能障碍，与皮脂上油有关的代谢和临床异常，行为影响，生殖成功率下降，死亡率下降以及人口水平下降。根据我们的发现和所获得的文献，我们对未来研究的建议包括：1）改善海洋哺乳动物中PAH和金属暴露的基线数据，2）改善海洋哺乳动物种群的溢漏前后数据，3）使用替代哺乳动物模型进行石油毒性测试，以及4）需要非常规石油对海洋哺乳动物毒性的经验数据。