The Pelican Thread

[SoonerCoug]

I thought it might be interesting to have a thread on the impact of the oil spill on animals, like the Pelican.




And here is an irrelevant but entertaining Pelican-eats-pigeon video. I can't help but wonder if it was really worth it to this pelican to swallow the pigeon.

[YOUTUBE]PO5ifLzLYiU[/YOUTUBE]

[Uncle Ted]

If the Exxon Valdez oil spill is any kind of comparison I suspect we can expect a lot more...

How many animals died outright from the oil spill?

Source: Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council, Questions and Answers.

“No one knows. The carcasses of more than 35,000 birds and 1,000 sea otters were found after the spill, but since most carcasses sink, this is considered to be a small fraction of the actual death toll. The best estimates are: 250,000 seabirds, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, up to 22 killer whales, and billions of salmon and herring eggs.”