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Brown Pelican covered in oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill

Photograph of an oiled brown pelican squatting on the beach.
(Office of the Governor of the State of Louisiana)

On June 3, 2010 a brown pelican, the Louisiana state bird, stands mired in oil in East Grand Terre. According to reports, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries was contacted, and biologists rescued about 20 oiled birds from the area. In November 2009 the brown pelican’s removal from the list of endangered species was widely celebrated. It was added to the list in 1970. More about the Gulf oil spill can be found in our Gulf Oil Spill overview