49 Little Blue Penguins oiled in the spill from the grounded cargo ship Rena were released today in New Zealand, after rescue and rehabilitation by emergency response teams, including International Bird Rescue, organized through Massey University’s New Zealand Wildlife Health Centre. In preparation for the release we set up three aviaries with a salt water … Read more
Hello everyone, There has been a catastrophic oil spill on a remote island in the mid-South Atlantic Ocean that is threatening an entire colony of endangered Northern Rockhopper Penguins. The MS Oliva ran aground on Nightingale Island, one of three islands of the Tristan da Cunha group, on March 16, 2011. All 22 crew were … Read more
Hello everyone, Today marks the 40th anniversary of the Oregon Standard Oil Spill, the massive 800,000 gallon spill that occurred in San Francisco Bay in 1971. The concept of International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) was born in the midst of the spill because it was clear way back in 1971 that oil spills were … Read more
Dear Friends and Supporters, After nearly five months working at the Gulf Oil Spill I just returned to California and want to give you an update on IBRRC’s efforts at the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The demobilization of all four rehabilitation centers and the remaining two stabilization centers should be completed in the … Read more
The new Louisiana bird rescue center is coming along nicely. It’s located in the town of Hammond which is about 60 miles north of New Orleans above Lake Pontchartrain. The new site is out of the hurricane ‘evacuation zone’. Since the beginning of the BP Gulf oil spill in April, the main animal rehabilitation center … Read more
A new report released by the prestigious American Bird Conservancy this week is asking serious questions about BP’s oil spill cleanup efforts and how they may be causing more harm than good to birds and to their habitats. The 12 page report released July 19, 2010, is entitled Gulf Oil Spill: Field Survey Report and … Read more
The the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has a nicely done video report (above) capturing the sights and sounds of the capture of oiled Brown Pelicans and oil-cleaning process at the Fort Jackson Bird Rehabilitation Center in Buras, Louisiana. The iconic brown pelican have been swamped by oil from the BP well blow out in … Read more
Duane Titus talks to CNN’s Anderson Cooper on his visit today to see the ongoing oiled bird care at the Fort Jackson Wildlife Center in Buras, Louisiana. As of noon today, 634 oiled birds have been captured, 783 dead birds collected and 42 have been released – mainly in Florida. Official wildlife numbers available each … Read more
With more oiled birds coming into Gulf Oiled Wildlife Centers each day, Executive Director, Jay Holcomb, takes time to update and explain the spill response from IBRRC’s perspective: As you can see we have had a significant spike in the number of birds that we are receiving in the Ft. Jackson center here in Louisiana. … Read more
The numbers of severely oiled birds jumped yesterday and Jay Holcomb returns with his updates from the BP Gulf Oil Spill wildlife response: Well, I am sure by now you have all seen the pictures of the oiled birds that were captured in Grand Isle, Louisiana. We are busy today with those birds and I … Read more