OIL SPILL —
ANIMAL MATTERS:
PETITION
from: the CARE2 Petition Site
Petition To Do More For Endangered Species In The Gulf Of Mexico [an older item but still useful -- Ed (SS)]:
Target: President Barack Obama, Int. Secretary Ken Salazar, Adm. Thad Allen
Sponsored by: Endangered Species Coalition
The Gulf's fragile ecosystems, including 36 national wildlife refuges, are facing unprecedented devastation.
BP and the U.S. government aren't doing enough.
The oil spill's effect on endangered species is alarming. At least 40 species are seriously threatened in the Gulf, including Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, Sperm whale, Brown pelican, Bald eagle, Least tern, Piping plover, Manatee, Whooping crane, Alabama beach mouse, Bluefin tuna, and Gulf sturgeon.
Although wildlife rescuers are working tirelessly, they are overwhelmed. There are far too few people and resources to find and save wildlife in this vast area. In addition, rules and red tape are stopping qualified wildlife rescuers from helping to save oiled birds and other wildlife.
Please join us in calling on the federal government to do everything it can to save more endangered wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico.
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OTHER OIL SPILL ITEMS (ANIMAL)
6/28/10 (date item was added here):
"Gulf Oil Spill Disaster: The Animals Most at Risk" [Atlantic bluefin tuna, sea turtles, ...]
-- 6/24/10 ABC News article by Max Follmer
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... "Pets should not be allowed on the beach in any areas where they could come into direct contact with the oil." ...
-- Gina Solomon, MD, MPH — Senior Scientist at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) for twelve years. (Work focused on protecting people from toxic chemicals).
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Statement from Alabama Humane Federation:
6/16/10:
All of us in the Alabama Humane Federation are saddened by the plight of the wildlife being affected by the BP Gulf Oil Spill. Many of our members live in the Gulf region so are seeing the damage first hand. We also know this is severely impacting families whose lives depend on the Gulf and that this is a crisis all of us will be dealing with for many years.
While this will be a long and difficult challenge there are many people who want to help. Since we understand that volunteers must be certified to help with wildlife capture and/or cleanup AHF would be happy to do our part to help get the word out about any training opportunities that become available. As animal welfare advocates we can reach out to thousands in the great state of Alabama who share our passion and who are just waiting for information on how they can either assist the existing wildlife centers in the region or join with other agencies in any organized and large scale cleanup. [emphasis added]
We are all in this together and our AHF members & supporters will do all we can to help the people and animals of the Gulf Coast.
Rea D. Cord
President
Alabama Humane Federation
www.alabamahumanefederation.org
email: hselco@bellsouth.net
HSUS President and CEO Wayne Pacelle calls the impact on wildlife "devastating"
6/14/10:
At a press conference in Plaquemines Parish, La., today, The HSUS’ President and CEO Wayne Pacelle and U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-La., provided a preliminary assessment of the impact of the massive and ongoing BP Oil Spill on wildlife. Mr. Pacelle and Senator Vitter also said that the response to the needs of wildlife “needs to be stepped up in a dramatic way.”
“The Fort Jackson wildlife care center is doing outstanding work, but there is no comprehensive and strategic effort to find oiled wildlife in the bays and marshlands. We need more trained personnel on boats working in the Gulf, and we need more boats deployed to search in a more systematic way for the animals in distress,” Pacelle said.
Earlier today, Pacelle and Vitter traveled to Grand Isle, Queen Bess Island and the Fort Jackson Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, which is taking in many of the oiled wildlife from the spill. The HSUS team plans to visit the Plaquemines Parish Animal Welfare Society today, which was the recipient, along with the St. Bernard Parish shelter, of 12.5 tons of pet food coordinated by The HSUS last week to help residents struggling to make ends meet in the wake of the spill. The team visited the Audubon Nature Institute, which has taken in sea turtles affected by the oil spill, and was impressed with the care staffers there are providing oil-slicked turtles.
Vitter said, “I really appreciate Wayne Pacelle and The HSUS for organizing this assessment as it was heartbreaking today to see all the wildlife affected by the spill. As I wrote in my recent letter to Admiral Thad Allen of the Coast Guard and Dr. Rowan W. Gould of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, we must continue to direct our best resources to find and rescue the impacted animals and wildlife.”
Over the weekend, the team surveyed by helicopter and boat the waters of the Gulf, travelling from coastal Louisiana to a stretch of Northwest Florida, which is beginning to feel the effects of the spill. While in Alabama, a large oil slick surfaced out of the Gulf to begin its assault on Orange Beach and Dauphin Island. At the Mississippi Beach, south of Pascagoula, small tar balls and brown water lapped at the shoreline. A local wildlife rehabilitator there, Robin Bush—a native of coastal Mississippi and a Hurricane Katrina survivor—described for the team the struggles both animals and humans alike have encountered since Katrina, and now, in the midst of the BP oil spill.
Pacelle assembled a team of experts to assess the effects of the spill on wildlife, and the group had spent the past few days touring the Gulf, wildlife rehabilitation centers and a local zoo taking oil-slicked turtles, leading up to the press conference Monday. The team consists of Debra Parsons-Drake, The HSUS’ Animal Care Centers’ senior director; Laura Bevan, The HSUS’ East Coast regional director; Sharon Young, The HSUS’ Marine Mammal Issues specialist; Barry Kellogg, Humane Society International veterinary medical doctor; Jim Reed, Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust habitat biologist; Lynn Miller, International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council, expert in oiled wildlife (bird) impacts; and Ed Clark, Wildlife Center of Virginia, Clinical Wildlife Health Initiative.
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Media Contact: Pepper Ballard: 301-258-1417; pballard@humanesociety.org
Follow The HSUS on Twitter. See our work for animals on your iPhone by searching “HumaneTV” in the App Store.
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization — backed by 11 million Americans, or one of every 28. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty — On the web at humanesociety.org.
BIRD TREATMENT ARTICLES/DEBATE:
7/4/10 (date item was added here):
"To Kill Or Not To Kill? What Is The Ethical Thing To Do?"
-- a 6/5/10 ScienceBlogs article by GrrlScientist. [A worthwhile review/analysis of the below-referenced Spiegel article. It also adds references and numerous comments.]
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7/4/10 (date item was added here):
"'Kill, don't clean,' is the recommendation of a German animal biologist, who this week said that massive efforts to clean oil-soaked birds in Gulf of Mexico won't do much to stop a near certain and painful death for the creatures." ...
-- from the 5/6/10 Speigel Online International article "Expert Recommends Killing Oil-Soaked Birds"
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6/28/10 (date item was added here):
"... Because the stress of being captured and bathed is as significant as the trauma of being doused in oil, and because research suggests that many rescued birds die shortly after being released, some experts say euthanasia is a more humane option. ..."
-- from the 6/8/10 Newsweek article "Should We Clean Oiled Animals?"
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There is a blog post specifically for any comments on oiled bird treat or kill debate referenced just above.
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