A TRAGÉDIA DO GOLFO CONTINUA FAZENDO SUAS VÍTIMAS

Segundo o texto, dos  animais que chegam mortos à praia, um percentual pequeno, está coberto de óleo, o que tem intrigado os cientistas e dificultado a  verificação da causa da morte

Dave Martin / AP

CSI: Gulf of Mexico

We may not have a solid estimate of the spill's toll on wildlife until after the oil flow is stopped.

Determining an oil spill’s toll on wildlife is never an easy feat—and the challenging conditions of the current gulf spill make it all the more complicated. While most of the animals collected alive have been visibly covered in oil, the majority of those that have been found dead have had no oil visible on their bodies, making the cause of death difficult to ascertain. According to an official report, of the 1,571 birds, 449 sea turtles, and 54 marine mammals found dead so far, 35 percent, 3 percent, and 6 percent, respectively, clearly had oil on them. “I’ve actually been surprised at the relatively low number of oiled animals being seen so far,” says Michael Ziccardi, director of the Oiled Wildlife Care Network at the University of California, Davis.