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Rescue workers had
collected 820 birds from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the majority of them
already dead. The current spill promises to be the largest in US history, and
as cleanup efforts stretch across the summer, it's clear that more oiled birds
will be found, stuck and suffering in the black stick liquid. And as they do
with every oil spill, rescue workers will go to great lengths to capture and
clean the survivors hoping to restore them to their natural habitat.
Is it worth the effort?
Some scientists aren't so sure. Because the stress of being captured and bathed
is as significant as the horror of being immersed in oil, and because research
suggests that many rescued birds die shortly after being released, some experts
say euthanasia (安乐死) is a more humane option.
Clean bird feathers repel
water (防水) and regulate body
temperature while dirty ones don't. Oil in particular makes feathers heavier
and decreases their ability to trap air, which in turn makes birds weak and
become easier to drowning, overheating and organ damage. Of course, being
captured and cleaned is no picnic either. Some birds wind up returning to their
destroyed habitats only to fall victim to the oil again. And those who manage
to avoid a second oil bath suffer dramatically shortened life spans (跨度) and lower reproductive success. Of the thousands of birds that
were rescued from the Prestige oil spill off the coast of Spain in 2002, only
600 were released into the wild; most of the rest died after just a few days in
captivity.
Rescue workers had
collected 820 birds from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the majority of them
already dead. The current spill promises to be the largest in US history, and
as cleanup efforts stretch across the summer, it's clear that more oiled birds
will be found, stuck and suffering in the black stick liquid. And as they do
with every oil spill, rescue workers will go to great lengths to capture and
clean the survivors hoping to restore them to their natural habitat.
Is it worth the effort?
Some scientists aren't so sure. Because the stress of being captured and bathed
is as significant as the horror of being immersed in oil, and because research
suggests that many rescued birds die shortly after being released, some experts
say euthanasia (安乐死) is a more humane option.
Clean bird feathers repel
water (防水) and regulate body
temperature while dirty ones don't. Oil in particular makes feathers heavier
and decreases their ability to trap air, which in turn makes birds weak and
become easier to drowning, overheating and organ damage. Of course, being
captured and cleaned is no picnic either. Some birds wind up returning to their
destroyed habitats only to fall victim to the oil again. And those who manage
to avoid a second oil bath suffer dramatically shortened life spans (跨度) and lower reproductive success. Of the thousands of birds that
were rescued from the Prestige oil spill off the coast of Spain in 2002, only
600 were released into the wild; most of the rest died after just a few days in
captivity.
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