Its distinguishing features can be found in its name: light-to-deep pink feathering on body and wings, and that long, spatulate bill.
I had dinner the other night with a former colleague. He lives in New Orleans and before his current employment he worked for an oil company.
He believes that the spill is this bad because of either a failure of imagination or a lack of will on the part of BP. According to my friend, technology exists that would have either prevented the explosion in the first place -OR- allowed them to cap the well more quickly. Apparently these technologies are in use in other parts of the world... in other words, they're neither new nor experimental.
Huh. That's food for thought.
More food for thought: It's impossible to keep birds away from the oil once it's in the water. When healthy, birds are difficult to catch, and they're committed to their habitats. Greg Butcher, director of bird conservation for the National Audubon Society, said, "Prevention is key with oil. Once it is spilled there is little we can do. Once the leak has stopped and the clean-up has progressed, we can think about restoring the lost bird populations."
Still more food for thought: I'm a fan of the idea of washing oiled birds, but maybe I'm too soft-hearted. According to one scientist, Less Than 1% of Oil-Soaked Birds Survive. Because damage caused by ingesting oil causes a slow, painful death, this scientist recommends euthanizing oiled birds rather than cleaning them.
Doodled from this photo.
