A strange unidentified grey substance has been causing serious environmental issues to seabirds in San Francisco Bay.
Wildlife experts has begun experimenting and studying a weird mysterious substance that started showing up about a week ago. The substance has killed over 200 birds so far, while an estimated 300 birds have already been cleaned and rehabilitated at the International Bird Rescue Center in Fairfield.
The birds have been getting their feathers covered by the substance in the water, which makes them unable to insulate themselves causing hypothermia.
Experts reported that the substance feels dirty, and like rubber cement. Mary Ficke, of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife states, “We hope to get the test results back soon, maybe as soon as today, ” but there are still no results just yet. They do know that the substance is not from a petroleum or oil spill, and is not a product of fish oil.
Wildlife expert’s say that the situation is being controlled and that, “We found one dead bird earlier. The sea state looks really good and we’ve seen hundreds of healthy, active birds. It’s a really good assessment at the moment,” states CDFW spokesman Andrew Hughan in an interview with Fox News. Even though the contamination has slowed down, wildlife protectors will be monitoring the waters throughout the weekend.
Hughan then went on to say, “This whole case since noon Friday, is a mystery. It really is. The scientists and chemists are working as hard as they can. They’re on full board to find out what it is, but it’s a real mystery.” Hopefully they are unable to find the source, and whoever is responsible will be billed for the damaged and resources used by the CDFW.
Photo: Cheryl Reynolds / International Bird Rescue
