Last December, Scott Newman was driving home relaxed after a weekend of snowboarding in the Sierra Nevada, when his pager went off. As the new response veterinarian for the state's Oiled Wildlife Care Network, Newman was needed to direct an animal rescue operation in Southern California, where 100 to 200 gallons of oil had been spilled or dumped illegally into the Bolsa Chica wetlands. At risk were thousands of migratory birds who stop there during the winter to feed on insects and worms crawling through the mud flats--a spot wildlife biologists liken to a "McDonald's along the 101 for these birds." The Oiled Wildlife Care Network, a UC Davis-based organization of veterinarians, wildlife rehabilitators and biologists, responds to such spills throughout California to treat and rehabilitate marine birds and mammals. Although headquartered at UC Davis through the Wildlife Health Center at the School of Veterinary Medicine, the network encompasses 21 organizations strategically located along the coast--the International Bird Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Berkeley, Monterey Bay Aquarium and UC Santa Cruz, among others. Facilities built from scratch While facilities for marine mammals had already been established by the California Marine Mammal Stranding Network when the network was envisioned six years ago, most of the bird facilities had to be built from scratch Humboldt State University's Marine Wildlife Care Center was the first completed. New facilities are being established in San Luis Obispo, Cordelia, Los Angeles and San Diego. In exchange for their participation, the rehabilitation groups receive training, equipment and supplies. "It's like having regional wildlife emergency rooms on the coast," says Jonna Mazet, director of the care network and assistant professor of conservation biology and veterinary medicine at UC Davis. The network--supported by California's Department of Fish and Game, and Office of Spill Prevention and Response--has two main missions: spill response and research support. Each year, the care network funds research projects that will add to our understanding of species affected by oil in the environment and potentially benefit rehabilitation efforts. Funded projects receive $5,000-$40,000 per year for up to three years. "These studies help us determine what we're doing right and what we're doing wrong," says Kirsten Gilardi, a new veterinarian at the network. She has her hands full managing the construction of new facilities and directing the research and technology development program. Gilardi is compiling an extensive review of the scientific literature on oiled-wildlife response techniques and the effects of oil on wildlife; her review will be made available on the network's Web site this spring. Concentrated in a sensitive area Although the amount of oil recently spilled into the Bolsa Chica area was infinitesimal compared to the 11.2 million gallons spilled by the Exxon Valdez 10 years ago this March, it was concentrated in a sensitive area. "A small amount of oil in sensitive habitats can severely impact the wildlife and the environment, sometimes even more so than a huge ship breaking up out at sea," Mazet says. "In an area like Southern California, where all the wildlife are forced to congregate in small areas, you're going to have higher numbers of animals affected relative to the volume that was actually spilled," she says. Egrets, many already too weak to survive, ducks, grebes, coots and a night heron were some of the species affected by the recent spill. "There's a low level of chaos at the beginning of every spill response," Newman says. "You don't know how much oil was spilled, how much time has passed, what resources will be needed and the species of animals affected." But being prepared really helps, he says. "With the network, we have a mechanism to get things done, know where birds can go and have trained people available to help." Oil delivers a 'double whammy' The sooner animals are taken into care, the less exposure they have to the toxic oil. For birds, the oil delivers a "double whammy" as Mazet explains--damaging their layer of insulating feathers and poisoning them. Even if the network is able to respond directly following a spill, Mazet emphasizes there is no way to determine what the survival rates will be, how many animals will be affected and how many will be cared for and released, and how many will ultimately survive. "Weather, time of the year, location, type of oil and species affected are all huge factors in rehabilitation efforts," she says. In harsh weather, birds are more likely to become hypothermic. "It's counter-intuitive, but that can also be a blessing," Mazet says. The bad weather may force birds from offshore to the beaches to huddle down for warmth, where they can be captured before the toxins have much time to affect their systems. Different petroleum products affect animals in different ways. For example, jet fuels are extremely toxic, causing severe problems moments after they come in contact with animals. "The fumes and volatile hydrocarbons in gasoline, diesel and jet fuel burn the skin, eyes and lungs, sometimes irreparably, so the animals can't breathe," Mazet says. On the other hand, those fuels evaporate quickly, so that animals affected in days after the spill are in less trouble than animals affected by crude or bunker oil, which can stay in the environment for a long time. "As we do more rehabilitation and as we learn more, we're going to make advances that will then allow us to show that animals are surviving for longer periods of time," Newman says. "Ultimately, the hope is that some of these species return to breeding or at least are involved in social attraction for other birds that would then go on to breed." More than 5,000 spills last year According to the Office of Spill Prevention and Response, there were 5,189 reported spills of hazardous materials or oil throughout California in 1998--about 1,000 of those in marine environments. Documented spills resulted from train derailments, tanker-truck accidents and old pipelines. A very small percentage actually came from ships at sea. For instance, in February 1997 near Donner Lake in the Sierra Nevada, 1,700 gallons of diesel fuel spilled while being transferred from a rail car to a storage tank. The pipeline transferring the oil was under the snow, and the oil seeped to the lake before anyone was aware of what was happening. What many people may not realize, Mazet says, is how often oil spills can be prevented. Chronic sources of pollution, like people dumping crankcase oil down storm drains, are usually undocumented spills, and yet it is estimated that the annual amount of oil that flows into the ocean from storm drains and other runoff in the United States is 22 times the Exxon Valdez spill. "All of us who drive our cars and want to have the conveniences of modern lives and mobile lifestyles need to take some responsibility," Mazet says. "If we didn't need gasoline, there wouldn't be tankers and there wouldn't be pipelines, so I think we have to consider our own actions and recognize that they impact the environment as well," she says. "Conservation education and awareness can help preserve the environment for wildlife and our children." Trina Wood was the interim associate editor for Dateline fall quarter.