It's been feared and predicted since the start of the oil crisis and now we see evidence of the harsh reality, as birds and other wildlife choke in oil.
According to the US Wildlife and Fisheries, more than 500 birds have been found dead, and more than 80 others have been rescued. If the oil leak isn't capped one thing is for sure birds will continue to be paralyzed and killed by oil for a long time.
Birds were found on the coast of Grand Isle Thursday. The scene is becoming too common to shrimp buyer Dean Blanchard. "We had a three foot tide that ran for four days, which ran the oil out. Now the tide is coming the other way so for the next five days it's going to be running the oil back in," said Blanchard. As a shrimp buyer his way of life has been changed because of the oil. He's left helpless just like the Brown Pelican, barely surviving extinction.
Governor Bobby Jindal said, "It saddens us. That's our state bird." As the state leader his hands are tied. Only so much can be done to save the birds. When they are found they're boxed up and taken in Fort Jackson, LA.
The oil keeps the birds feathers from being waterproof. "Water can get in, the air can get in, the sun can get in, which is not supposed to happen to a bird in its skin," said Tri-state bird researcher Rebecca Dunne.
Birds are also struggling to survive on Grand Terre Island. There are pelicans stuck in a pool of oil and others struggling to move. Even once they're rescued they still struggle to survive. "They have a lot of dehydration, kidney problems, liver problems, some reproductive affects," said Dunne.
Thursday the US Fish and Wildlife service reported the rescue center at Fort Jackson, has treated 66 oiled birds; 22 have been released, but not into the gulf. The problem is others are still out there. Researchers are projecting the oil spreading around Florida up the east coast and potentially across the Atlantic.
Sarah Rosario
srosario@katctv.com
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