VETERINARY STUDIES ON OILED BIRDS FOLLOWING THE ERIKA WRECK: IMPROVEMENT OF KNOWLEDGE

After the wreck of the tanker Erika off south Finistere in December 1999, all the care centres of the Atlantic coast received several thousand of oiled seabirds. From the first days of the oil spill, TotalFinaElf contacted the National Veterinary School of Nantes (ENVN), in order to manage studies on birds on care; the aim was to improve the veterinary knowledge on these birds and to evaluate the problems facing with the birds in such extended pollution. The management of the care must keep in account the primary risk linked to the oil but also the secondary risk linked to detention conditions. The authors studied the primary risk, which are the impact on feather and the toxic impact and the secondary risks, which are traumatic and infectious. Concerning the direct risk, the main impact was on the feathers: the results showed that the oil has an impact on microscopic characteristics of feathers and that, the longer the stay in oil is, the more damaged the feathers are. However, toxic target organs and tissues did not show modifications in relation with toxic phenomena problems. In the same way, the vanadium dosage (carried out by spectrometry of atomic absorption), trace element present in oil, did not show high values. Concerning the indirect risk, the main traumatic risks are lesions of legs, feet and breast: the authors describe a treatment. The management of infectious risk (mainly due to Salmonella and Aspergillus fumigatus) allows us to adapt better the treatment and then to protect in the same time the seabirds and people in the care Centre and the domestic animals around de the centre.