Oily Bird Doesn’t Get the Worm
GrrlScientist writes:
When oiled, seabirds are vulnerable to drowning because their feathers’ waterproofing qualities are destroyed and their downy feathers’ insulative properties are lost, leading to either hypothermia or sometimes, as is the case for many Gulf birds, hyperthermia. Oiled birds lose body weight rapidly as their metabolism increases to compensate for their falling body temperature. Sticky, oiled feathers are heavy and cannot trap air between them to keep the birds buoyant, so they cannot fly and often sink into a watery grave below the waves. Thus, birds are very particular about their plumage, and use their bills and tongues to remove debris, including oil, despite its terrible taste and smell. They sometimes ingest the oil, which causes health problems, such as ulcers and damage to internal organs that detoxify the blood.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) has collected a total of 1,589 “visibly oiled” birds in the Gulf since the BP Deepwater spew began, according to FWS’ July 9 report (pdf). The good news is that the number of cleaned and released birds has been climbing, now up to 450 (28.3%). Oily birds found dead number 569 (35.7%). That leaves 571 (35.9%) oily birds captured and in some stage of rehabilitation. GrrlScientist notes that the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) has reported average release rates of 50%-80% over its nearly 40 years of operation, but survival rates after release vary greatly with the circumstances of the spill, the species affected, and the rescue response.
Another 1,056 birds collected from the Gulf have been found dead with no visible signs of oil. It’s my understanding that FWS will be making cause-of-death determinations on these, but so far we don’t know how many of these can be chalked up to the spill. Daily updates of all FWS collections (non-birds, too) are available here.
Picture via Buzzfeed, How to Clean a Pelican.
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The fact that Nalco and BP are still using the toxic dispersants is criminal , and is likely what is killing the unoiled birds.
The oil is bad enough and it’s harder to clean up when dispersed and much more toxic.
Thanks for cleaning the birds ~
(Drive less…avoid petroleum and plastics…)
And many, many more are left to die on the islands and marshes in the thousands of miles of coastline that are not being visited by cleanup and rescue crews. That one center manned by IBRRC is not enough. There should be other facilities set up in other locations which could be done easily by the organizations that have rescued oiled wildlife in many spills right there in that area for decades and have the equipment, experience and people to do it. Yet are not being allowed to participate.
I handled distressed pelicans from time to time when I live on the Gulf. Some kind of training (mine was from watching my dad) is necessary. The real issue, as noted, is control and fears about liability.