Up To 35,000 Birds May Be Killed By Estonian Oil Spill - Reuters

[hatrack]

TALLINN - A thick oil slick off the shore of northwest Estonia could kill as many as 35,000 birds, far more than previously feared, as freezing seas hamper rescue and recovery efforts, bird experts said on Monday.

Around 3,000 dead birds have been recovered so far, said Vilju Lilleleht, a senior member of the Estonian Ornithological Society. He added studies showed only about 10 percent of avian casualties from oil slicks were ever found.

"The real number of deaths could be as high as 35 000," Lilleleht said.

The spill of about 20 tonnes of oil, reported last Saturday, was initially expected to have only a limited impact but ornithologists said many birds were suffering as oil clogged their feathers. Birds coated in oil have been seen off the southwest coast of Finland, environmentalists said.

EDIT

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/34925/story.htm