<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size:18.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;
color:#212438"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>Seabirds are marine birds</b>. They make their primary living in the
oceans. Seabirds in comparison with normal birds generally live longer. They
also experience long-distance migrations in their lifespan.</span><u1:p></u1:p></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>According to new
research, tiny amounts of crude oil on the water's surface can damage the
feathers of seabirds</b>. This study has been published in the Royal Society Open
Science.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;<img src="/media/django-summernote/2022-10-05/c622aa10-d5ad-4985-827f-1b8411ce362f.webp" style="width: 100%;"><span style="font-size:
18.0pt;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;color:#212438"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size:
18.0pt;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;color:#212438"><u1:p></u1:p></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The research
team from the</span>&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><font color="#000000">Marine Ecology
Group in UCC in Ireland collected feathers from Manx shearwaters. It is a
seabird species that are thought to be at risk of oil pollution. The
researchers examined the feathers of seabirds. They did this to overlook how
quickly water passes after exposure to increasing concentrations of oil.
These feathers were assessed under high-powered microscopes to examine
structural changes.</font></span><u1:p></u1:p><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; line-height: 1.2;"><font color="#000000"><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The result of this study
discovered that the extremely thin oil sheens, between 0.1 and 3 micrometers in
thickness, were enough to have a significant effect on feather structure and
impact waterproofing.</span></span></font></p><p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; line-height: 1.4;"><span style="font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 18px;"><font color="#000000">Other studies have also shown that seabirds when exposed to oil, they are more likely to become waterlogged, cold, and less buoyant.</font></span><font color="#000000"><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br></span></span></font></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size:18.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;
color:#212438"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Various types of research on oil spills have shown that the
<b>toxic chemicals</b> remain in the ocean for years and years. Thereafter it settles
down at the bottom thereby poisoning the ocean floor. This poisoning can kill
various animals and birds present in the water. Also, it can kill them due to
the <b>increase in suffocation</b>. &nbsp;</span><u1:p></u1:p></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>Unrefined oil (</b></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><b><a href="https://phys.org/tags/crude+oil/"><span style="color:black"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; font-size: 14pt;">crude
oil</span></span></a><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"></span></b><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>)</b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b> </b>has been spilled into the sea in huge volumes due for various
reasons. First is the disasters such as <b>Exxon Valdez and Sea Empress spills.</b></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><br></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;<img src="/media/django-summernote/2022-10-05/97721640-42f9-45f1-9f91-c36e7a0ea2d5.webp" style="width: 100%;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><br></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><br></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><u1:p></u1:p></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>Exxon Valdez oil spill </b>was a massive oil spill that occurred on<b>
March 24, 1989</b>, in Alaska. This spill polluted over&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(26, 26, 26);"><b>1,300 miles (2,092 kilometers)</b></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">&nbsp;of the intended shoreline as well as nearby water bodies.
Thousands of people contributed to the cleaning process of this oil spill.
Despite all these efforts, the spill destroyed much of the native wildlife,
such as sea otters, salmon, etc.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br></span><o:p></o:p></span><u1:p></u1:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>Sea Empress spills</b></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>&nbsp;</b>occurred
on <b>15</b></span><sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>th</b></span></sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>&nbsp;February 1996. </b>The Sea
Empress oil tanker ran aground.&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(68, 68, 68);">The oil tanker spilled 72,000
tons of crude oil along the <b>Pembrokeshire Coastline</b></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">.</span><o:p></o:p></span><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><u1:p></u1:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size:18.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;
color:#1A1A1A"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Apart from the disaster reason, it is also released into the
environment due to extraction and transportation activities. The release of
crude oil increases oil pollution in the seas.</span><u1:p></u1:p></span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size:18.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;
color:#1A1A1A"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Pollution of any kind is always harmful to the life of living
beings. Thus, oil pollution also poses threat to the existing seabird population.
Even though it is released at moderate levels, oil spreads quickly across the
surface of the sea, thereby coating a large marine area. This can be harmful to
seabirds. </span>&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><u1:p></u1:p></span><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, &quot;sans-serif&quot;; color: rgb(33, 36, 56);"><b>Emma Murphy</b>, the lead
author of the study, said, "Chronic small-scale&nbsp;oil pollution&nbsp;is
commonly overlooked in the&nbsp;marine environment, though it has been shown to
have serious implications for the fitness and survival of seabirds. This study
examined one species, but the results can be extended to other species that rely
on waterproofing to stay healthy when at sea for long periods."</span></p>