International Bird Rescue workers clean oil from a laughing gull at Ft. Jackson, Louisiana.   Oil makes it difficult for birds to repel water, creating secondary issues related to thermoregulation...Jenn Bruno, DVM, Jeanie Beaston, Paraprofessional, Jocelyn Selin, DVM Student, and Erica Miller, DVM...Employees and volunteers from International Bird Rescue and Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research, Inc. work to triage incoming birds impacted by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.  To date, the treatment facility has seen more than 800 birds brought in by wildlife workers for oil-related injuries and illnesses.  When a bird is covered in oil, it's ability to repel water is severely impacted, leaving many birds without the ability to thermoregulate, forage for food, or properly hydrate.  Incoming birds must first be stabilized, warmed, fed, and hydrated before they are candidates for cleaning.  Once cleaned of oil, the birds are monitored.  Once they are clean and stable, the birds are evaluated for re-release...Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.  The spill is estimated to be gushing 35,000 to 60,000 barells of oil into the ocean per day.  Difficulties installing monitoring devices at the source have made this number difficult to clearly ascertain.  The spill is among the world's worst.
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