Dear friends and supporters, We want to share with you some exciting news about a pelican that was spotted last month in Southern California. The Brown Pelican was one of many that International Bird Rescue (IBRRC) rehabilitated in 1990 during the American Trader oil spill in Huntington Beach, CA. This rare and invaluable band encounter … Read more
A new oil spill along the coast of Brazil has claimed the lives of hundreds of Magellanic Penguins. All seem to be victims of a spill from an unidentified source. Most of the penguins found dead were in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. At least 260 live penguins are now in care. The … Read more
Update from the oil spill incident that began in December 2007 in Patagonia, Argentina: After a long and difficult two days, the second wave of team members, including Jay Holcomb and Michelle Bellizzi from IBRRC in California, finally on the ground after arriving at almost midnight Thursday night. The team doesn’t have luggage but are … Read more
Two senior IBRRC oil spill response members are now on Argentina’s Patagonia coastline to assist with a mystery oil spill that has affected more than 400 birds. IBRRC’s Executive Director Jay Holcomb and Rehabilitation Manager Michelle Bellizzi arrived in South America yesterday to help an international team of wildlife experts treat oiled birds. Also joining … Read more
After seeing news reports on the Cosco Busan oil spill, a fourth grade class in New Jersey raised nearly $600 to donate to help save more birds. The class created a campaign they called “Dimes for the Ducklings” and made posters and sent morning announcements telling other students about the plight of oiled birds. This … Read more
Recent San Francisco Bay Area storms seem to be churning up more of the oil that spilled from the Cosco Busan two months ago. According to news reports, the Coast Guard sent clean-up teams to several beaches along the East Bay shoreline of San Francisco Bay today. Apparently oil was spotted in the Emeryville area … Read more
An oil spill of unknown origin is causing great harm to at least 430 seabirds along Argentina’s Patagonia coastline. A team from International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is responding to this remote location. The total number of oiled animals currently in care is 430 and includes 20 steamer ducks, 200 Magellanic penguins, 180 silvery … Read more
As the Cosco Busan spill response finally comes to an end, the official tally for bird deaths reached 2,500. This includes 1,851 birds collected dead since the November 7th oil spill. Another 649 birds died or were euthanized during initial treatment at the joint Oiled Wildlife Care Network (OWCN)/IBRRC wildlife hospital in Cordelia, CA. On … Read more
In the “lets make it right” category. Please take a look at the wonderful release of two young red-tailed hawks oiled in the aftermath of the Cosco Busan oil spill last month. They were cleaned of oil at our facility in Cordelia and spent weeks in treatment at WildCare in San Rafael. As many know … Read more
The numbers of birds affected by the Cosco Busan disaster and other factors continues to rise. “Every time we think we have a break, something starts up again,” said Jay Holcomb, Director of International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC). “The end of 2007 has been very hard on aquatic birds off the coast of Northern … Read more