BP Complaints

WHO:    U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hammond Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

WHAT:    Birds, mostly brown pelicans and laughing gulls, rescued from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and treated at the Hammond Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Louisiana will be released at Atchafalaya Delta and Rabbit Island 

WHERE:   Atchafalaya Delta: Berwick Public Boat Launch, Levee Road, Berwick, La. 70342 
Rabbit Island: Cameron Public Launch, Hwy. 3143 Davis Road, Cameron, La. 70631

WHEN:    Atchafalaya Delta: Friday, Aug. 27, 2010, 6 a.m. CDT
Rabbit Island: Saturday, Aug. 28, 2010, 6 a.m. CDT

The boat ride at Atchafalaya is approximately 45 minutes. There are multiple release locations, with a total round-trip time of approximately four hours.

The boat ride to Rabbit Island will be approximately 30 minutes each way. The bird release at Rabbit Island will be completed in approximately one to two hours.

Media will be able to film and photograph the bird release from the boats. No media will be allowed on the island. Upon return to the dock, media will have the opportunity to interview and speak with wildlife experts from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, wildlife veterinarians, wildlife operations and rehabilitation staff.

WHY:      Birds oiled or injured as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill are being rescued, treated, and relocated in the Gulf states.  Birds are released only after wildlife specialists determine that they are sufficiently rehabilitated. The birds are released as far as possible from areas affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and into the same type habitat and populations from which they came, but with as little risk of getting re-exposed to oil as possible.

CONTACT:   Walter Tegge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, (757) 284-6253
                   Bo Boehringer, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, (225) 765-5115

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