Post-release survival of oiled seabirds: comments on some of the implications of Sharp’s recent paper

The publication in Ibis of a paper on the post-release survival of oiled seabirds in North America (Sharp 1996) was heralded by a surprising degree of press and media coverage for a scientific paper. This, no doubt, was due to the current circumstances of the Sea Empress which at the time was discharging its cargo into the sea off Milford Haven (Wales), creating another environmental disaster that would involve a large number of seabirds, the ultimate fate of which related to the subject matter of Sharp’s paper. The media coverage that preceded the actual publication of Ibis 138 created a large degree of irritation and even annoyance. This was due to the fact that the high point spectacular statements made, indicating a survival period of released seabirds after cleaning and treatment for oil contamination, was only a few days. There were no supporting details to these statements and no statistical information to give credence to them. This created a very demoralising effect on organisations and individuals caught up in the Sea Empress oil spill. It was some considerable time before the scientific data relating to these statements could be studied and verified. Ibis is a very prestiguous journal and there can be little doubt that the statistical data and conclusions, presented by Sharp (1996), are correct. However, there are areas of consideration that may not have been taken into account and which may reveal a rather different picture in the United Kingdom than exists in North America. These expected differences are the subject of this comment on the paper of Sharp (1996).