The heartbreaking image of a small bird covered in thick oily gunk, found on the coast of East Grand Terre Island, La., has become a symbol of the environmental disaster caused by the oil from a blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico.
But the bird, a laughing gull, is expected to survive, thanks to the International Bird Rescue Research Center, where it is being treated.
IBRRC told KING 5 News that most of the birds they have collected in the last three days are still alive.
The oil has steadily spread east, washing up in greater quantities in recent days. Government officials estimate that roughly 23 million to 49 million gallons have leaked into the Gulf.
As the oil comes ashore from Louisiana to Florida, pelicans struggle to free themselves from oil that gathers in hip-deep pools, and dead birds and dolphins are washing up.
IBRRC has taken photos of their rescue efforts in the Gulf.
