I was not surprised that my week at the IBRRC in San Pedro did not end without encountering another oiled bird. The bird that came in to the center was an oiled Murre that was rescued on a beach near Ventura. He was tainted with California black crude oil. In January of 2005, there was a major oil spill that occurred in this area that resulted in 1400 oiled birds, mostly Western Grebes. It was originally called the Ventura mystery spill because no source of the oil could be found. Most of the evidence now points to a natural seep. Although oil seeps occur naturally, this one was probably due to major flooding that resulted in mudslides during that time. The theory is that the oil had formed a “scab” that was then peeled off from the torrent. Since the Murre was covered in the same type of oil and was found in the same area, it’s very likely that there are still random minor seeps that are occurring and continuing to harm wildlife.

People seem to have mixed emotions about this type of spill. A large portion of the funding for the rehab of these birds comes from the responsible party, usually an oil company. Although people don’t like to see oil companies acting irresponsibly, I guess it can be comforting to find the culprit...kind of like solving a crime. It was pretty upsetting to see that one little Murre caked in oil. It’s hard to imagine what it would be like during a major spill, with hundreds of oiled birds. It must be pretty traumatizing. It’s scary to think that without the help of the IBRRC, these beautiful birds would die.

The end of this week marked the end of my time at the IBRRC, and the West coast. My next stop is the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary in Tampa Bay, FL. I am really excited to go there because I've heard so many great things about the organization and the people that work there. It's one of the largest in the country and has hundreds of birds at any given time. I’m also excited to work with all the different species of birds back East. See you there!