CHENNAI: After bird-life was badly hit by the recent Ennore oil spill, the state forest department has found close to 50 birds of different species completely ‘painted’ black with oil.
On Wednesday, an eight-member team of forest officials, fishermen, and members of Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary (BMAD) that carried out a survey at a few bird areas in Manali and Ennore belt said several birds looked sick and exhausted.
Nishanth Ravi, a BMAD volunteer who was part of the rescue team, said, “We didn’t find any dead birds, but there were many sick ones with oil all over the body. The mangrove area is severely affected. Crustaceans have been completely wiped off and there are lots 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 the birds, Spot-billed Pelicans were the worst hit and found in most numbers.
Other bird species like Painted Stork, Lesser Cormorant, Great Cormorant, Darter, Eurasian Curlew, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Cattle Egret, Pond Heron, and Brown Headed Gull were also sighted with oil stains.
Sick Caspian Tern shifted to Guindy park
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 treatment,” Nishanth said. Chennai Wildlife Warden E Prasanth told TNIE that 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 get close to the affected birds. We are intensifying our efforts. On Thursday, three teams will visit the areas exploring the possibility of rescuing a few birds and throw some fish feed for the birds in these areas.”
Bird watchers said there were far less migratory birds in Ennore-Kosasthaliyar wetlands post the 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, they said.
First turtle death in Pulicat The season’s first Olive Ridley turtle death was reported in Pulicat on Wednesday. A dead carcass washed ashore at Korai Kuppam fishing hamlet, which incidentally also saw the beaching of oil balls recently. Local fisherman R Vinod told TNIE there was no external injury to suggest the death was caused by a propeller hit.
Rehabilitation of birds
Experts from Wildlife Trust of India Vivek Menon and Dr NVK Ashraf have been roped in to help with birds’ rescue and rehabilitation. Total of 105.82 KL of oily water and 393.5 tonnes of sludge has been removed so far
Fall in migratory bird count after oil spill
Bird watchers said the number of migratory birds found in Ennore-Kosasthaliyar wetlands has dwindled after the oil spill as there is no food available. Fish and shrimp are gone, they said