AN ENDANGERED Kemp’s ridley sea turtle surfaces in the Gulf of Mexico for a breath of air. Sea turtles, which come on land only to lay eggs, not only get oil on their skins and shells when they surface in spill areas, but also risk breathing toxic fumes.

most of those died within days of being released. Cleaned and released birds should be counted among the dead, Sharp contended in the journal Ibis in 1996 and still believes today. That’s why, as harsh as it sounds, the standard practice in Germany and Norway has been euthanizing oiled birds and other wildlife. In the United States, the public out-

cry over animal suffering made it impossible not to try to save oiled wildlife in Alaska and elsewhere. But based on the Exxon Valdez and other

spills, many population biologists thought money spent on rescue work was money wasted. Far better to spend the cash on preserving habitats or help- ing endangered species, they said. Some ornithologists even tried to block the 1994 creation of an official response unit at the California Department of Fish and Game: the Oiled Wildlife Care Network. “Those were some of the ugliest days in science,” recalls wildlife biologist Richard T. Golightly of Humboldt State University. In the years since, rescuers have

blunted the criticism by getting better at what they do. The Oiled Wildlife Care Network, administered by the University of California–Davis (UCD), has built or helped outfit a dozen facil- ities capable of rehabilitating animals on a moment’s notice, caring for thou- sands of birds and other animals in more than 75 spills. Responding so quickly has been one key to better results, says Dave Jessup, director of California Fish and Game’s Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center in Santa Cruz. Researchers also

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DOUG PERRINE (SEAPICS.COM)