No Laughing Gull

Gallery: Man & FaunaPosted July 7, 2010464 views6 comments

Volunteers clean a laughing gull at the Fort Jackson Oiled Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Buras, LA, July 5, 2010. The facility has released around 400 birds back into the wild after they were soiled by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil well explosion in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20th. So many more however are not making it and out of all of the assignments I cover for my publication during the year this is the hardest to look at for me. Its pretty hopeless there for both the people and the wildlife. This is a hard thing to witness and then push the shutter but this is what I do for a living and the images and stories we produce are looked at by the members of congress (CQ / Roll Call) so maybe just maybe if we rub it in their eyes enough more money will flow down there for the good people of Fish & Wildlife who are over run and under staffed.

Model: NIKON D3
Firmware: Adobe Photoshop CS4 Macintosh
Lens (mm): 70
ISO: 2000
Aperture: 3.5
Shutter: 1/320
Program: Manual

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Katja Rosvall on July 9, 2010 at 3:22 AM

The message in this image is very strong.

Compared to you similar photo recently on Avian, I like the closer crop; the look on the gull's face is less intense, but here it's almost pleading.

The image on Avian:

http://www.naturephotographers.net/imagecritique/ic.cgi?a=vp&pr=150975&CGISESSID=faab0dd488486b3d30f2607201f9882d&u=31945

If these images don't make people think, I don't know what will. Well done Douglas!

Registered on August 16, 2009, 28 Posts, 636 Comments

Comment posted by Douglas Graham on July 9, 2010 at 6:23 PM

Thanks vary much Katja. My wish would be that some of these images moving out on the main stream media outlets are going to have some positive cause and effect. The reality is that the region is so devastated that its really not a lot anybody can do. I'm going back in August to document hopefully the capping of the well and to take another broad look at how badly the eco system has been damaged. When I left the last shrimper was off loading the last catch from the Gulf on the LA coast so who knows how bad its going to be for the people and the wildlife in another month and half.

Registered on May 14, 2009, 123 Posts, 522 Comments

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on July 14, 2010 at 5:38 PM

Congrats and thanks for sharing the plight of these birds Doug

Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments

Comment posted by Barb Pflaum on July 15, 2010 at 1:42 PM

Congratulations on the WP. A very poignant image and the expression on the birds face makes it even more so. It really shows the plight of these birds and how much they need our help.

Registered on January 14, 2009, 316 Posts, 2724 Comments

Comment posted by Stuart Williams on July 19, 2010 at 1:06 AM

great shot that tells the story perfectly. well done.

Registered on December 7, 2007, 247 Posts, 4792 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on July 19, 2010 at 3:20 PM

Poor thing - he is definitley not laughing.
Just a sickening situation.
Congrats on the EP.

Sandy r

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments