In Pictures: Endangered animals
In Pictures: Hybrid animals
In Pictures: Climate change and animals
In Pictures: The Copenhagen Climate Conference
In Pictures: Animals of the Galapagos
In Pictures: Animal migrations around the world
Grand Isle, Louisiana, on March 30, is bouncing back almost one year after the BP oil spill. A hand-painted sign expresses local sentiment. This small town on the Gulf coast relies heavily on the oil industry, tourism, shrimping and sport fishing. It was hit hard by the BP oil spill - although many found jobs in the cleanup. Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor
In this April 8 photo, a heron is seen nesting in mangrove on Cat Island, damaged by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which is heavily eroded from its previous state, in Barataria Bay in Plaquemines Parish, La. Mangrove which the pelicans nest on, has been reduced and much of it killed after the island was completely overwashed by oil from the oil spill, and poorly maintained booms inflicted harm as well. Gerald Herbert/AP
Grand Isle, Louisiana, on March 30, is bouncing back almost one year after the BP oil spill. Subcontractors with BP are still working on cleaning up the beach - which is open to the public. Only a few small tarballs are washing ashore. Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor
This March 29 photo shows businesses near the coast in Destin, Fla. Gulf Coast tourism officials who gathered for a meeting at a Florida Panhandle resort during the week weren’t exactly jumping for joy over the prospects for growth in 2011, even with the worst of the recession and BP oil spill in their rear-view mirrors. Instead, there was measured optimism that this would be a year of modest recovery, that vacationers would continue coming back to the beaches and seafood restaurants. Melissa Nelson/AP
This March 29 photo shows businesses along the coast in Destin, Fla. Gulf Coast tourism officials gathered for a meeting at a Florida Panhandle resort during the week. Melissa Nelson/AP
This March 29 photo shows hotels along the beach in Destin, Fla. Gulf Coast tourism officials gathered for a meeting at a Florida Panhandle resort during the week. Melissa Nelson/AP
In this April 8 photo, pelican eggs are seen in a nest on Cat Island, heavily damaged by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, significantly eroded from its previous state in Barataria Bay in Plaquemines Parish, La. Gerald Herbert/AP
In this April 13 photo, teens walk past a sign of a closed oyster business in Golden Meadow, La. A number of Louisiana fisherman have had to close because of economic conditions blamed on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Dave Martin/AP
In this April 13 photo, silt, debris and tar balls coat the shoreline on Fourchon Beach in Port Fourchon, La. Dave Martin/AP
Oil spill cleanup worker Nekita Sharpe searches for tar balls on the beach in Perdido Key, Fla., on April 19, a year after the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Dave Martin/AP
In this April 8 photo, Cat Island, heavily damaged by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, is seen heavily eroded from its previous state in Barataria Bay in Plaquemines Parish, La. Mangrove which pelicans nest on has been reduced and much of it killed after the island was completely overwashed by oil from the oil spill, and poorly maintained booms inflicted harm as well. Gerald Herbert/AP
In this April 8 photo, newly hatched pelican chicks are seen on Cat Island, which was damaged by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and is now heavily eroded from its previous state in Barataria Bay in Plaquemines Parish, La. Gerald Herbert/AP
Photos of the Day: Photos of the day 05/16
In Pictures: Dazzle like Beckham
In Pictures: Weather extremes 2013
Photos of the Day: Photos of the day 05/15
In Pictures: Duchess Kate's royal baby bump
Photos of the Day: Photos of the day 05/14
In Pictures: Keffiyeh is rebel chic
Gallery: Tea Party politics
What once seemed likely – a settlement – now appears off the table as the US prepares to take BP to court in New Orleans on Monday, alleging the company exhibited 'gross negligence' in the lead-up to the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010. At stake: $17 billion.
Seemingly as complex as the Gulf of Mexico itself, the federal civil trial against the operators of the doomed Deepwater Horizon oil rig is set to begin Monday – a high-dollar showdown pitting oil giant BP's cash wealth against the legacy of one of America's richest, yet most troubled wildlife habitats.
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