CHENNAI: A rescue team on Wednesday quickly jumped into the process of rescuing birds from the Manali and Ennore belt after close to 50 birds of different species were found completely 'painted' black with oil.
The oil spill is taking a heavy toll on the already degraded environmental ecosystem, including mangrove cover and wetlands, in Ennore. Now, the sightings of 'black' oil-drenched Pelicans and Painted Storks raise concern about bird mortality as the annual migration season is peaking.
It was an 8-member team, comprising forest officials, fishermen and members of Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary Animal Shelter (BMAD).
Nishanth Ravi, a volunteer at BMAD and who was part of the rescue team, told TNIE, "We didn't find any dead birds, there were many sick ones with oil all over their body. The mangrove areas are severely affected. The crustaceans were wiped off and there were a lot of dead fish in the creek. There were instances where birds were feeding on the oil-contaminated dead fish and vomiting."
He said it was difficult for the team to rescue the birds since most of them were out of reach sitting on tall mangrove trees. Among all the birds, Spot-Billed Pelicans were the worst hit and found in most numbers.
Other bird species like the Painted Stork, Lesser Cormorant, Great Cormorant, Darter, Eurasian Curlew, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Cattle Egret, Pond Heron, Grey Heron and Brown Headed Gull were also sighted with oil strained bodies.
The team managed to rescue one Caspian Tern, which was very sick and unable to fly. "The bird had a fracture. It was shifted to Children's Park in Guindy for necessary treatment," Nishanth said.
Chennai Wildlife Warden E Prasanth told TNIE it's a difficult operation. "The rescue team had got caught in the low tide on Wednesday and had to walk in hip-level water to go close to the affected birds. We are intensifying our efforts. On Thursday, three teams will be visiting the areas exploring the possibility of rescuing a few birds and also throwing some fresh fish feed for the birds in these areas."
The bird watchers said there were far fewer migratory birds in the Ennore-Kosasthaliyar wetlands post-oil spill as there is no food available and the ecosystem got completely compromised. The fish, shrimp and other crustaceans are the primary source of food for the birds and it's completely gone.
Meanwhile, Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests, visited Ennore on Wednesday and took stock of oil spill mitigation measures. "We are doing our best to restore the environment," she told TNIE.
First turtle death in Pulicat
The season's first Olive Ridley turtle death was reported in Pulicat on Wednesday. A carcass was washed ashore at Korai Kuppam fishing hamlet, which incidentally also saw the beaching of oil balls recently.
Local fisherman R Vinod told TNIE that there was no external injury to suggest the death was caused by a propeller hit. "It washed ashore dead. The beaching of oil balls almost stopped. I don't know what caused the death."
The forest team will be visiting the village on Thursday and take the samples for analysis. An official said turtles that die in the open sea will wash ashore. This would be a natural death.