Washing oiled sea otters
Abstract The 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill resulted in the death of 3,000–6,000 sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from exposure to Alaska North Slope crude oil, and the cleaning and rehabilitation of hundreds. The washing and care methods developed during that experience provided standard protocols for trea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2012-03-01
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| Series: | Wildlife Society Bulletin |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.113 |
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| author | David A. Jessup Laura C. Yeates Sharon Toy‐Choutka David Casper Michael J. Murray Michael H. Ziccardi |
| author_facet | David A. Jessup Laura C. Yeates Sharon Toy‐Choutka David Casper Michael J. Murray Michael H. Ziccardi |
| author_sort | David A. Jessup |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill resulted in the death of 3,000–6,000 sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from exposure to Alaska North Slope crude oil, and the cleaning and rehabilitation of hundreds. The washing and care methods developed during that experience provided standard protocols for treatment of oiled sea otters, largely still in use 20 years later. From 2004 to 2008 at the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center (Santa Cruz, CA, USA), we experimentally manipulated water type (salt–fresh) and temperature, and we monitored otter physiology, behavior, and thermal properties to evaluate recovery from washing in the absence of oil. We also dipped otters in canola oil, and were able to wash one otter naturally oiled with Monterey formation crude oil, using the same methods. Providing soft freshwater in recovery pools reduced recovery time substantially. Warming the freshwater appeared to offer additional benefits in some cases. Infrared thermography and subcutaneous temperature‐sensitive passive integrated transponder tags were 2 new technologies that enhanced this research. The improved washing and care methods developed have the potential to reduce the time required for recovery of water repellency of sea otter pelage. © 2012 The Wildlife Society. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3eade3b85e98443fbdefb37610e2b6ac |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2328-5540 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2012-03-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Wildlife Society Bulletin |
| spelling | doaj-art-3eade3b85e98443fbdefb37610e2b6ac2025-08-20T01:56:32ZengWileyWildlife Society Bulletin2328-55402012-03-0136161510.1002/wsb.113Washing oiled sea ottersDavid A. Jessup0Laura C. Yeates1Sharon Toy‐Choutka2David Casper3Michael J. Murray4Michael H. Ziccardi5Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center, California Department of Fish and Game, Office of Spill Prevention and Response, 1451 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USADepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USAMarine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center, California Department of Fish and Game, Office of Spill Prevention and Response, 1451 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USAUniversity of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USAMonterey Bay Aquarium, 886 Cannery Row, Monterey, CA 93940, USAOiled Wildlife Care Network, Wildlife Health Center, University of California Davis, 1 Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, USAAbstract The 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill resulted in the death of 3,000–6,000 sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from exposure to Alaska North Slope crude oil, and the cleaning and rehabilitation of hundreds. The washing and care methods developed during that experience provided standard protocols for treatment of oiled sea otters, largely still in use 20 years later. From 2004 to 2008 at the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center (Santa Cruz, CA, USA), we experimentally manipulated water type (salt–fresh) and temperature, and we monitored otter physiology, behavior, and thermal properties to evaluate recovery from washing in the absence of oil. We also dipped otters in canola oil, and were able to wash one otter naturally oiled with Monterey formation crude oil, using the same methods. Providing soft freshwater in recovery pools reduced recovery time substantially. Warming the freshwater appeared to offer additional benefits in some cases. Infrared thermography and subcutaneous temperature‐sensitive passive integrated transponder tags were 2 new technologies that enhanced this research. The improved washing and care methods developed have the potential to reduce the time required for recovery of water repellency of sea otter pelage. © 2012 The Wildlife Society.https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.113Enhydra lutrisExxon Valdezpetroleumrecoverysea otterwashing |
| spellingShingle | David A. Jessup Laura C. Yeates Sharon Toy‐Choutka David Casper Michael J. Murray Michael H. Ziccardi Washing oiled sea otters Wildlife Society Bulletin Enhydra lutris Exxon Valdez petroleum recovery sea otter washing |
| title | Washing oiled sea otters |
| title_full | Washing oiled sea otters |
| title_fullStr | Washing oiled sea otters |
| title_full_unstemmed | Washing oiled sea otters |
| title_short | Washing oiled sea otters |
| title_sort | washing oiled sea otters |
| topic | Enhydra lutris Exxon Valdez petroleum recovery sea otter washing |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.113 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT davidajessup washingoiledseaotters AT lauracyeates washingoiledseaotters AT sharontoychoutka washingoiledseaotters AT davidcasper washingoiledseaotters AT michaeljmurray washingoiledseaotters AT michaelhziccardi washingoiledseaotters |