good-bye 2010

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We'll close out 2010 with a look at the bird that became the symbol of the biggest environmental story of the old year: the brown pelican.

The Gulf Oil Spill impacted hundreds of coastal species, but perhaps none more visible than this one. By mid-summer, 58 percent of all dead or injured birds collected by rescuers were brown pelicans, a bird that had just been removed from the federal endangered species list last year. Louisiana felt the greatest impact from the oil spill. Pre-disaster, the state played host to between 8,000 and 16,000 breeding pairs of these birds. How many will be there this spring?

Time will tell.

Last spring, Wayne Mallinger sent me this photo of an "oil-free" brown pelican he took in 2009 on a visit. No one knows if this bird is still alive.

Thanks for sharing, Wayne.

- Photo of oil-free brown pelican by Wayne Mallinger

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