That’s what Christer Michaelsen in the State’s Nature Inspectorate says NRK.
– They are unable to find food, and they also freeze to death easily, he continues.
He and several colleagues were out in the area on Wednesday and counted around 200 injured seabirds. Later, several injured birds were discovered both elsewhere on Hornøya and further west in the fishing village of Kiberg.
It is especially common loons that have been found, but also auks and puffins, he says The Coastal Agency.
– This is a nesting area of national importance, and now the nesting season is approaching. The Norwegian Coastal Agency is keen to find out where the oil comes from, so that we can prevent more birds from being injured, they write.
Seabird researcher Tone Kristin Reiertsen at the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research says that the vast majority of birds will die. Those who do not starve and freeze to death will eventually die of poisoning.
– They spend a lot of time cleaning their plumage. They get a lot of oil into their digestive system, and gradually become more and more poisoned. In essence, they have little chance of survival if they get oil in their plumage, says Reiertsen to NRK.
On Friday, the Norwegian Coastal Administration’s monitoring aircraft will go out to see if they can locate the oil that has poisoned the birds.
Samples have been taken of the oil, and the results will probably be ready next week.
#seabirds #smeared #oil #Hornøya
2024-05-13 06:02:42
