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San Francisco Bay bird rescue: Mystery goo bedevils experts: #sfchronicle page one: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 20 January 2015
A mysterious substance is coating the feathers of seabirds in the San Francisco Bay area and leaving them vulnerable to cold temperatures: photo by Justin Sullivan via The Guardian, 23 January 2015
San Francisco Bay map showing eastern shoreline locations of the first affected birds to be found: image via International Bird Rescue, 17 January 2015
A male Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), one of hundreds of waterbirds found over the past week on East Bay beaches coated with a mysterious odorless substance, clear to pale gray in color, that like petroleum breaks down the bird’s feather structure, destroying its ability to regulate body temperature in the cold San Francisco Bay waters. The unidentified rubber cement-like goop mats the seabirds' feathers causing the animals to lose their insulation and become hyperthermic: photo by Cheryl Reynolds/International Bird Rescue, 17 January 2015
Surf Scoterscontaminated by mystery substance in waters along eastern shoreline of San Francisco Bay: photo by Cheryl Reynolds/International Bird Rescue, 17 January 2015
Eared Grebes contaminated by mystery substance in waters along eastern shoreline of San Francisco Bay: photo by Cheryl Reynolds/International Bird Rescue, 17 January 2015
Removing @MysteryGoo from birds: Baking soda, vinegar & @DawnDish soap: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 23 January 2015
Volunteers wash a male surf scoter at the International Bird Rescue in Fairfield, California. The death of 100 birds in the San Francisco Bay Area has baffled wildlife officials who say the feathers of the birds were coated with a mysterious substance that looks and feels like rubber cement: photo by Marcio Jose Sanchez/APvia The Guardian, 23 January 2015
San Francisco Bay birds succumbing to mysterious 'grayish goo': Substance saps birds’ ability to insulate against cold – about 100 have died: Associated Press in San Francisco via The Guardian, 20 January 2015
A mysterious sticky substance has been found coating the feathers of about 300 seabirds in the San Francisco Bay area in the past few days, and wildlife officials blame it for dozens of deaths.
California department of fish and wildlife authorities were expected to conduct necropsies and laboratory tests on Tuesday to try to uncover the source of the grayish gunk, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. About 100 birds have died so far.
Officials believe the substance was dumped into San Francisco Bay. It is not a public health or safety risk to humans.
Fish and wildlife spokesman Andrew Hughan said analysts already know it is not a petroleum-based substance, and said it killed the birds by sapping their ability to insulate themselves against the cold. They froze to death.
The interim executive director of International Bird Rescue, Barbara Callahan compared the goo to rubber cement.
“It’s kind of gray. It’s hard to get off in the wash,” she said. “It is sticky, but it doesn’t want to come off the feathers.”
The coated birds were concentrated in suburban areas east of San Francisco, including the cities of Alameda, San Leandro and Hayward. Callahan said the goo was probably a man-made product, meaning a pipeline burst or something was intentionally used to foul the East Bay.
She said workers at International Bird Rescue have had to pretreat birds with baking soda and vinegar to loosen the substance before washing it off with dish soap. The usual treatment for washing pollutants such as oil, roofing tar, cooking oil from fast-food restaurants and glue traps did not work.
“I’ve worked 20 years in this business, handling oil spills all over the world, and I’ve never seen a product like this impact animals in our clinic,” Callahan said.
The treatment cost is upward of $8,000 a day to pick up and treat the birds.
“We are doing everything we can as an organisation,” she said. “I hope our supporters recognize that we need some help.”
@AudobonCA: Appreciate all your volunteers helping us make "Every Bird Matters" #MysteryGoo response: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 22 January 2015
New seabird update: 242 in care, 55 washed, 187 awaiting wash: SF Bay mystery goo: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 19 January 2015
A rescued Bufflehead sea duck that is coated in an unknown substance is seen at International Bird Rescue's San Francisco Bay Center in Fairfield. Hundreds of birds coated in the same substance were found at different places along the East Bay shoreline, starting on Friday, January 16, 2015 and transferred to International Bird Rescue for further care: photo by Cheryl Reynolds via International Bird Rescue, 21 January 2015
#MysteryGoo seabird numbers: San Francisco Bay Center: 322=Admitted 263=Live in care 163=Washed: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 22 January 2015
RT @IntBirdRescueState lab: (PIB) not culprit #MysteryGoo killing seabirds SF Bay: image via Julia Freeman @JuliaMacauley, 21 January 2015
Good work! #Mystery Goo Seabird Rescue from @IntBirdRescue: image via Monterey Bay Aquarium @MontereyAq, 21 January 2015
Amber Transou with International Bird Rescue holds two live surf scoters in Alameda that got coated with the gooey substance: photo by Mike Kepka/San Francisco Chronicle, 19 January 2015
Mark Russell with International Bird Rescue secures a live surf scoter affected by mysterious substance on Monday in Alameda: photo by Mike Kepka/San Francisco Chronicle, 19 January 2015
Surf scoters comprise about 70% of the birds that were collected #MysteryGoo San Francisco response: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 23 January 2015
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), young male: photo by John Gresham, 29 February 2008
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), male: photo by USFWS Southwest Region, 21 February 2009
Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata), male (left) and female (right): photo by Omar Runólfsson, 24 April 2011
Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata), male (left) and female (right): photo by Omar Runólfsson, 24 April 2011
Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata), female (left) and male (right): photo by Omar Runólfsson, 24 April 2011
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), male: photo by Omar Runólfsson, 24 April 2011
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), male, Arrowhead Marsh, Oakland, California: photo by Len Blumin, 7 November 2006
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), male, Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, Huntington Beach, California: photo by Alan D. Wilson, December 2007
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), Los Osos, Morro Bay, California: photo by Mike Baird, 28 March2007
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), male, Monterey Bay, California: photo by Ben Lascelles, 17 January 2009 (via Internet Bird Collection)
Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata), male and female swimming together, Coronado Cays, California: photo by Peter Vercruisse, 13 February 2004 (via Internet Bird Collection)
Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata), group swimming near the dock, Boundary Bay, British Columbia: photo by Ken Havard, 7 April 2014 (via Internet Bird Collection)
Majority SF Bay #MysteryGoo seabirds: Surf Scoters with 200+ brought to our center: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 23 January 2015
Shot...... #seaduck hunting: image via jeff coats @pitbossH2Ofowl, 24 March 2014
#seaduck hunting thank you Jimmy for the picture: image via jeff coats @pitbossH2Ofowl, 22 January 2014 Ocean Pines, MD
#seaduck hunting: image via jeff coats @pitbossH2Ofowl, 21 November 2014 Ocean Pines, Maryland
#surfscoter: image via jeff coats @pitbossH2Ofowl, 24 October 2014
@pitbossH2Ofowl:Salt Ice #seaduck hunting: image via Cam Pauli @CamPauli, 24 January 2014
#CaliforniaDFW scientists say #MysteryGoo not petroleum or polyisobutylene PIB : KQED: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 21 January 2015
State lab: polyisobutylene (PIB) not culprit: #MysteryGoo: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 21 January 2015
A bird is cleaned at the International Bird Rescue in Fairfield, California. California officials are unable to identify a grey, goo-like substance that has been found coating the feathers of hundreds of birds. More than 200 seabirds have been found dead along the coast, while more than 300 have been rescued so far: photo by Robert Galbraith/Reuters. 20 January 2015 (Reuters/Robert Galbraith)
Goo Seabird #s: Total 360 collected, 280 live brought to ctr, 38 died after transport. In care 242: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 20 January 2015
Washing Seabirds of SF Bay #MysteryGoo: Clean birds looking great: Surf Scoter: image via BirdRescue.org @IntBirdRescue, 21 January 2015
