Furbush 1

Ross Furbush
Bob Pavia
6/5/12
Honors 222
Lucy Loo and Lucy the Loon
It was completely dark. My body was compacted into a small ball to the point
where I couldnt tell which part of me was my foot and which part was my back. All I
needed to know was the location of my head. The pressure had been increasing
over this past week to the point where getting out of this predicament was the
number one priority.
Tap, Tap, Tap.
I thrust my head and beak at my hard confines. The egg shell began to show
signs of a crack. My mom must have stepped in front of the arctic sun to watch me
emerge, because the shells outsides got slightly darker. The light pierced the small
hole I made for myself and I continued to work away at my incasing. With more
head room I learned what a neck was because I could feel it waking up and
extending. Neck: check. Wing: check. Wing: check. Foot: check. Foot: check.
Everything was there.
I stumbled out of what I thought was an impenetrable fortress, but what my mom
has been guarding as a fragile, vulnerable investment. My species, the yellow-billed
loon, is the most territorial of the loon species so my mom has been through a lot
guarding her nest site (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002). The light was
unbearably bright.
My mom with her big beady eyes, adapted to absorb maximum light when
looking for prey under water (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002), smiled and
said Hello Lucy.
*****
Surprise!
Lucy Loo jolted as her friends jumped out from behind the sofa, the curtains,
and the coat closet.
How did you get in to my apartment? Lucy Loo wondered. How long were
you guys planning on surprising me?
Laughter seeped through the cracks of apartment door #5 as Lucy Loo heard
her friends recount their strategy in throwing her surprise birthday party. Margaret
brought out a simple, but delicious looking cake with 24 candles on it. One of the
candles had blown out while the cake was being transported, so while Margaret
struggled to relight it, Lucy Loo admired the beautiful seabird that was iced onto her
cake.
Lucy Loo loved seabirds and after just graduating from University of Alaska
she had been looking for a job with seabirds for a while. It wasnt until earlier this

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week that she landed a job at the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The
National Wildlife Refuge covers 3.4 million acres of water and volcanic islands and
cliffs and is home to more than 40 million seabirds of over 30 species. The office
and station is located in Homer, Alaska (Delehanty). Lucy Loo had wanted to have a
party to celebrate her new job, but this was even more perfect.
Today was Lucy Loos golden birthday. Margaret doesnt remember her golden
birthday because she was born on April 5, she was only five years old. But Lucy Loo
was lucky because today on March 24, she was turning 24.
*****
It has been almost two years since my immaculate break through at my birth
town, Colville River Delta. There are patches of yellow-billed loon breeding ground
all across northern Alaska, but my home town is one of the most concentrated. The
Colville River is about 600 square kilometers of wetlands on the Alaska North Slope.
There are a lot of wetlands in this area because there is little underground drainage,
little water runoff from inland, and the frigid temperatures reduce the amount of
water that evaporates (Field, North, & Wells, 1993).
Someone might tell me that today is March 23, but I dont know what a March
is. All I know is that my time in winter grounds is coming to an end and I should
start thinking about my long journey back to my nesting grounds in the Arctic. Its
not that I dont like the arctic, but because of ice cover I cant find any food unless I
travel a bit more southward (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002).
This winter was a great winter, surfing the waves from California to
Washington. I dont care for the big waves like the California surfers, nor do I need a
board to do my surfing. Unlike the squawking gulls, I do most of my flying under the
surface. I am an expert at catching medium-sized fish, but some of my favorite
treats are crustaceans and mollusks (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002).
Today I landed in one of my favorite places in all of the non-breeding range:
Shoup Bay. Its a really tranquil place just seven miles west of the human port of
Valdez. Humans call it the Shoup Bay State Marine Park, but I know it as a large tidal
lake just swimming with food, surrounded by low vegetated rock, sand spits, tidal
flats, and moraines. There are mountain goats and many other famous mammals
that spend their time on the shores, but I could care less about the mammals
onshore. I am only concerned with those competing for food like the thousands of
migrating scoters that are starting to arrive, the largest and fastest growing blacklegged kittiwake colony, and the many other species of waterfowl and shorebirds
that tour in these parts (Turrrini, 2005).
Im really excited for May migration because you see, Im seeing someone.
His name is Larry and he is a yellow-billed loon too. Unlike penguins or humans, I
dont really mate for life (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002). I might stick with a
guy for a couple of seasons, but its important not to get too attached, because
anything can happen in the rough Arctic and Pacific waters. But Gavin is really
handsome. He is really strong and I like the way he cares for me, especially when

Furbush 3
Im on the nest. I havent seen him during the wintering months, but I know hell be
there waiting for me at our old nest site. I cant wait!
*****
Lucy Loo had been doing really well at the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife
Refuge as a park ranger. It was March 23 and she was educating a school group
about the different organisms that are found in the intertidal. Her kindness and
warm smile made her a natural at teaching families and school groups about the
Alaska ecosystem.
Lucy Loo had a boyfriend named Larry and they had been dating for almost a
year and a half. Lucy Loo has had an eye for Larry ever since he came to her
surprise birthday party two years back, but today she was supposed to call him Mr.
Patterson because Mr. Patterson brought his 2nd graders to the National Wildlife
Refuge for science week. Mr. Patterson smiled at the glowing Lucy Loo who, like him,
was great with kids.
Lucy Loo wasnt only an educator. She has been trained by the refuge on how
to rehabilitate and care for injured wildlife. Although it is hard for Lucy Loo to see
wildlife come in with injuries, she is passionate about helping them however she
can. Before leaving work, she was going to check up on one injured sea otter which
had injuries concurrent with a boat collision and four seabirds, two glaucous-winged
gulls and two common murres, all four with wing injuries.
Larry was going to leave the Wildlife Refuge at around 2:00 pm so the kids
could be back at school for pick-up at 3:00. Before leaving, Larry scanned to see if
any of the kids were watching before he stole a kiss from Lucy Loo.
Ewwwwwwww.: Larry must have not seen Conrad, who now stood with his
tongue hanging out Mr. Patterson kissed that lady!
The yellow bus bounced out of the parking lot and Lucy Loo cleaned up from
the kids drawing activity. There were drawings of several birds, but mostly sea
otters. Lucy Loo laughed as she looked at one drawing of a sea otter riding a gull.
That one must have been Conrads.
Lucy Loo had asked her boss, Mark, earlier in the week if she could leave a
little early in order to start packing for her hiking trip the next day. Tomorrow was
her birthday and she and Larry had been planning a hiking trip for months now.
Tomorrow was going to be the start of the best weekend of her life. This was their
first trip!
*****
Word got around fast that something was different about the water today.
There were shadows in the water that didnt mirror the clouds in the sky.
There is this island called Rat Island that is part of the Alaska Maritime
National Wildlife Refuge. It is 6,861 acres with up 950 foot cliffs with no humans. It
has broad, rolling plateaus of maritime tundra with few trees and 90 lakes and slow

Furbush 4
trickling streams. In other words it is the perfect habitat for other nesting seabirds
(Will, 2007). Me, I dont really like the steep cliffs to nest; I like low elevation tundra
lakes much farther north (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002). I miss the Colville
River Delta, but Larry and I will meet again in no time.
I have been to Rat Island and I didnt like it too much. There are small rodents
everywhere. Their terrible teeth crack open countless seabirds eggs and bash the
sculls of many young. Word on the cliffs is that it didnt used to be like that.
Although there are no humans living on the island, it doesnt mean that it remains
untouched. A really old tufted puffin told me that his grandparents were told by
their grandparents who were told by their grandparents parents that a shipwreck in
1780 left the island with invasive Norway Rats (Will, 2007). The birds were not used
to predators that would eat their eggs so they did nothing to protect them. They
could only watch as the future of their species slowly disappeared.
Just like the seabirds on Rat Island, my many avian competitors and I were
not used to this dark cloud in the water. I didnt know enough nor did I have any
experience with the thick water cloud so I went on like I would on any normal day.
My plan was to start feeding in Cabin Bay off of Naked Island. Then I was going to
move across the Prince William Sound to Knowles Bay right off the shores of
Chugach National Forest. If the hunting is good then I would stay for an extra hour,
otherwise its to Galena Bay and then back to Shoup Bay for the night.
The morning started early on the 24th of March. I headed towards Naked
Island like I had planned. Flying low over Prince William Sound I saw many more of
those large metal floating things than usual and smaller, but still large, flying metal
things. They seemed to be gathering around a particularly large metal floating thing
that didnt seem to be doing too good at the floating bit. I got some good fish in
Cabin Bay. Four herring didnt have much of a chance against my striking force. In
order to stay on schedule I took off towards Knowles Bay. Like all other loons, we
need 30-50 meters of open water to take flight (Russel, 2002). Since I wanted to
head East, I was looking at more of a 30 meter flight strip so we were looking at a
close one.
I have a destination in mind, but if I see anything on the way then I usually
dont mind stopping and taking a mid-flight snack. There was this particularly good
looking fish that I could barely see below one of those murky water clouds. I quickly
landed and dove. Missing a prey item isnt awful. It happens from time to time and
you have to make sure to not let it get to you. This time was different though, I
came up from my dive and my feathers felt different. I looked down and they were
covered with a dark black paste. Some of that murky water cloud that everyone was
talking about must have stuck. Knowing it would wash off, I kept trying for fish in
this area. I caught only one in this spot so I continued on my way, now soaked in
blackness.
*****

Furbush 5
The phone call came in at 4:00 in the morning. It was her boss, Mark. At
12:04 am the Exxon Valdez ran aground on a pinnacle of Bligh Reef (Alaska, 1990).
The International Bird Rescue was looking for volunteers to help with seabird rescue
and cleaning and wanted to start rescue operations on the 27 th. Lucy Loo was one of
the only people in Southeast Alaska along with Mark, who knew how to clean up
oiled birds. Public involvement has resulted in disastrous rehabilitation efforts
including birds being rolled in kitty litter, dipped in melted butter, covered in
cornmeal, and completely plucked all ending with tragic consequences (Welte &
Frink, 1988).
Lucy Loo knows not to damage the feathers. She would use a detergent bath
with water at 103 or 104 degrees (Welte & Frink, 1988). After years of scientific trial
and error on different detergents (15), she would know to use Dawn, a brand of
soap that reduces the chance of irritating the skin, at concentrations of 2-15%. The
part of cleaning that most often goes wrong is the rinsing of Dawn from the
feathers; Lucy Loo, like always, will be thorough. It takes about 60 minutes for her to
clean a bird and if at any point the birds heart rate shoots up, its important to
stabilize it in a quiet, clean area (Welte & Frink, 1988). But Prince William Sound
doesnt have the 10 gallon tubs and equipment that she is used to in Homer.
The International Bird Rescue would not be able to set up a cleaning station
and rehab area until the 27th, three days after the spill. Lucy Loo would join the
International Bird Rescue when they arrive, but meanwhile she and Mark wanted to
help as soon as possible. Larry and the special weekend would have to wait. They
would have to wait a long time. Lucy Loo and Mark spent all of the 24 th travelling to
Valdez to set up a preliminary seabird response team so they could begin before the
resources of the International Bird Rescue arrived. They would try and go out on the
25th to begin a small rescue effort: a very small rescue effort.
*****
I am hungry. No. I am starving. I havent caught a fish since that one
yesterday in middle of Prince William Sound. I live in the Arctic, but I have never felt
as cold as I do now. My feathers used to make a protective layer to keep the cold
water out, but the black goop spreads my feathers. The frigid water attacks my skin.
The painful process of hypothermia begins. My feet are exhausted because I have to
work extra hard to stay afloat. I have never been graceful in the air, but now I cant
even fly. If an eagle attacked, I would be as helpless as my prey and all he would get
is a beak full of goopy tainted meat (Organization, 1989).
Larry would agree that I am usually a very beautiful bird. I am a very talented
preener. I can organize my feathers so the light hits them just right. I know Larry
enjoys showing me off during breeding season. I keep trying to preen, but it doesnt
work. Im not a Gull when it comes to preening oil. Gull species can live 20 years
after being oiled because of their self-cleaning capabilities (Camphuysen, 2011). I
start digesting the oil that at first only covered my outside. Kidney damage. Altered
Liver Function. Digestive Tract Distress. Dehydration. Metabolic Imbalance. The oil in

Furbush 6
my system could cause any one of these. I wait to see which title will take my life.
My guess? I can almost hear the other unoiled birds say it after I pass.
Oh Lucy, hypothermia for her
Oh Lucy, Kidney Damage and Dehydration. Poor Larry
At this point, Larry and the calm breeding grounds of the North Slope look so
far away. I was going to be a mother this summer. Yeah I was nervous. I would first
have to find a nest site, a mound of muddy tundra vegetation with enough of a
depression to put my nest in. I knew it would have been hard to find a site that is
partially hidden by vegetation. I knew it would be hard to take care of two eggs.
After hatching they would ride on my back, just like I rode mother. I would have
protected them viciously (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia, 2002). I knew it would be
hard to be a mother, but nothing is as hard as this. Slowly dying. Watching the oil
eat away my insides and outside.
I dont know where I am. I dont spend too much time on land, but land is
what I feel as the waves push me up onto the hard cobble beach. Dying is less scary
as an animal. I have a feeling humans think it to be scary. But for us it is natural.
Suddenly two delicate, but firm hands take hold of my wings. The human
must have approached from the waters edge because I barely noticed the human
(Welte & Frink, 1988). I can barely see, but I feel myself being placed into a
cushioned heated box. I lie next to one other feathered body. Two more join us a bit
later making a total of four feathered friends in the box. This time before closing the
box the human in an urgent and tender voice said:
Hi guys, Im Lucy Loo and Im here to save you.
*****
Lucy Loo and Mark stayed with the Marks cousin who lives and works in
Valdez as a dock aid. They were introduced to a man who could hook them up with
an unoccupied shipping containment close to warm water hookup which could be
used as their bird response laboratory space. This would later be a piece of one of
the four International Bird Rescue stations: Valdez, Seward, Homer, and Kodiak
Island (12).
Lucy Loo brought back the four birds she collected on the beach of Valdez:
two common murres, a tufted puffin, and an unusual find, a yellow-billed loon.
Yellow-billed loons are the largest species of loon (Brookshier, Louther, & Senturia,
2002) and they are the rarest of the four loon species that breed in Alaska (Field,
North, & Wells, 1993). In 1979 they were assigned an oil vulnerability index of 65,
which is the highest among loon species and higher than the average of 51 for the
other 127 bird species found in the Pacific Northeast Region. There are
approximately 5,000 yellow-billed loons that are found in Alaska of the almost
10,000 worldwide (Field, North, & Wells, 1993).
There was no oil on the beach, so the birds must have traveled there
themselves before being stranded. Lucy Loo knew that there were many more birds
off coast that wouldnt make it, but she didnt have a boat yet to retrieve them. She

Furbush 7
would have to collect nearby beached birds until the International Bird Rescue
teams arrive with more equipment. While Lucy Loo collected the birds, Mark was
setting up the lab for the first batch of birds. Resources were limited, so they would
have to deal with what they had.
In a fully equipped oiled bird response space, Mark and Lucy Loo would have
containment areas to put both pelagic birds and the more land geared seabirds. The
pelagic birds would need net-bottomed containment areas, because they usually fly
or rest on water so they are not accustomed to holding their weight on land. The
net-bottomed containment area would allow the bird to spread its weight more
evenly (Couper, Dorrestein, & Beades, 2008). Lucy Loo didnt collect any pelagic
birds, so thus far they didnt need net-bottomed containment areas, but the
International Bird Rescue teams would have to include them on their mass
shipment.
Mark had already put down shredded newspaper that he found in the small
town, which is absorptive and dust free; seabirds do not encounter a lot of dust on
the ocean currents. Sawdust could also be used, but never hay, straw, or carpeting
to line cages. The later bedding options could cause aspergillus spores (Couper,
Dorrestein, & Beades, 2008). With the first birds in the lab, every second counts,
every second is critical.
*****
The human, who I now know to be Lucy Loo, brought us into a large white
indoor area. She set us down in a large metal box that was a little too small for all
four of us. Lucy Loo called a male human over and he grabbed a common murre
and Lucy Loo grabbed me. A small fluffy white flower thing was used to wipe the
gooeyness from my nares and throat (Welte & Frink, 1988). I am used to diving and
having water pushed against my eyes; its the ticklish sensation of being on a hunt.
The humans must have known that I liked this because they flushed out my eyes
with salt water. The male human asked for the 0.9% physiologic saline solution after
Lucy Loo had done my eyes, so thats what the humans must call it (Welte & Frink,
1988).
In stark contrast with the fun tickling of my eyes, a large tube was shoved
down my throat. A lot of a clear electrolyte solution with numbers that read 15-20
cc/kg poured down my throat. This made my stomach a little less heavy, probably
flushing out the black stuff. I also started to not feel so thirsty. The assault on my
throat cavity wasnt over because a pink bottle that read something like PoptooBistmol, in a much smaller amount (2-4cc/kg), was added to the soup pot. I looked
over and the murre, who was extremely depressed didnt receive the oral
treatment. A sharp thin piece, as shiny as a silver fish, was pushed into the murres
veins for the fluids to flow into (Welte & Frink, 1988). After seeing him go through
that, I must say Im grateful for Lucy Loo and her less poignant point of entry.
The murre remained on the other table and I was brought back to the metal
box that I heard Lucy Loo call a sink. I now had time to check out the color band that

Furbush 8
was on my leg (Welte & Frink, 1988). All the birds had the cute anklets; mine was
beautiful; it was yellow. I heard the male human that Lucy Loo called Mark say that
after I get cleaned Ill get some food! I wonder what it is? Probably a herring, maybe
a crustacean? Lucy Loo leaned down in the sink and looked into my deep eyes.
You must be hungry.
I wanted to tell her my name was Lucy too. Squawk
Youre a loud one miss loon. You got fight in you. I do too
She lowered a jar of mush that was made out of aquarium fish food and vitamin
tablets (Couper, Dorrestein, & Beades, 2008). That aint no herring.
Squawk
Dont you worry. After youre perfectly healthy, we will get you some real food.
I was delicately cleaned and scrubbed. I look beautiful again. I feel warm
again. Larry will see me soon, all pampered by Lucy Loo.
Nature had a different plan for me though. Nature knew all along that I
wouldnt make it. Not with that much oil. The sharp pain came fast and it didnt last
long. One of my important insides, like sliced by a knife, broke. I lay beautiful. I lay
warm.
Lucy Loo, I owe you
*****
Little girls cry when their brothers steal their ring pop and grown men cry
when they lose the one they love. Crying can be the answer to lots of situations.
Lucy Loo knew this. She wasnt ashamed that she wanted to cry. She was
embarrassed to cry in front of Mark. Lucy Loo just didnt want to. Crying would take
away some of the fluids necessary to sweat and Lucy Loo wanted to sweat the oil
spill out. Phone calls rang all around the world as people began to discover the
severity of the spill (Alaska, 1990) and Lucy Loo wanted to be one of the many, who
will collectively sweat more hard work and focus on fixing the poisoned Sound, than
the volume of barrels that pour out of the 11 punctured tanks on the Exxon Valdez
(Alaska, 1990). The nation sweat tears.
*****
I touched down in the Colville River Delta after a long and successful season
feeding off the Washington coast. I hit a particularly tasty spot right off the Olympic
Coast National Marine Sanctuary where there was plenty of upwelling, which means
great fish (NOAA, 2008), but I was dying to see my Lucy. She wasnt to be found by
our usual vegetated island, but I wasnt too worried. Days pass and then weeks and
I start to think that she wont be coming back. I dont want to give up on her cause I
know she is fighting her way back to breed, she is a fighter. Almost all season I wait
and call, but she doesnt answer. I would like to go find her, maybe she is lost, but
my most important task is to pass on my valuable genes so that my kids will be able

Furbush 9
to return to this lake. After one more lone call of the loon, I leave our territory to find
another female to spend my summer months with.
Prelude
Larry the loon experienced an odd summer of 1989, despite adult yellowbilled loon density being similar to how it was in 1983 and 1984. He also learned
from surveying the 29 nesting territories in search of another female that 26 were
occupied, which is a normal percentage of nesting territories to be occupied. What
was different though was the total percentage of loons nesting. (One could tell if
loons were nesting because a nesting pair would lie low to the water or dive and
surface at a distance when approached. A nonbreeding pair on the other hand
would swim together undisturbed.) Only 42% of the loons present in Colville River
Delta were nesting in 1989, compared to the 76% and 79% nesting pairs in 1983
and 1984 (Field, North, & Wells, 1993).
The carcasses of more than 35,000 birds and 1,000 sea otters were found
after the spill, but since most carcasses sink, this is considered to be a small
fraction of the actual death toll. The best estimates are: 250,000 seabirds, 2,800
sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, up to 22 killer whales, and billions of
salmon and herring eggs. (Holba, 2010).
The International Bird Rescue operation arrival date is unknown, but they
collected 1,604 live birds and successfully rehabilitated and released 801 of those
collected. The others, 803, either died or were euthanized (Organization, 1989).
Although Lucy the Loon is a fictitious character, she would have been one of
the 87 yellow-billed loons that died in the Exxon Valdez oil spill (Wohlforth, 1990).
From a study by Carl Lensink, it can be inferred that the 87 loons are actually 1030% of the total mortality number, bringing the range of dead birds from 290 to
870. There is a maximum of 5,000 yellow-billed loons in Alaska and although the
yellow-billed loon did not have the largest number of dead from the spill, Nancy
Tankersley, a loon expert from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, claims they
were probably the bird species hardest hit by the spill. The yellow-billed loon was
not included in the damage assessment study because of their vast range and the
small number individuals that died. This means that the yellow-billed loon species
got none of the $35 million for oil spill studies (Wohlforth, 1990).
With funding from the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (Sheppard,
2012), paid by the company responsible for the spill, an organization called Island
Conservation in October 2008 successfully eradicated the rats from Rat Island (Will,
2007). It might be hard to ever see the benefit of an oil spill, but if one were to find
an upside, it would be in the projects like these that are directly funded by the oil
company. With a series of traps and poisons, this organization solved a problem that
had been lasting for over 200 years. New species such as the Rock Sandpiper,
Pigeon Guillemot, Common Eider, Red-faced Cormorant, and Gray-crowned Rosy
Finch are successfully breeding when they havent been able to for centuries (Will,
2007). The University of California, Santa Cruz continues to monitor the progress of

Furbush 10
the Rat Island ecosystem which can take up to 5 years to rebound (Will, 2007). The
increase in biodiversity and abundance is the least humans can do to try and
continue to minimize the ever lasting effects of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.
Unfortunately, none can guarantee that another day like March, 24 1989 will
not occur for the yellow-billed loon. 18 percent of the worlds population of yellowbilled loon live within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. This area was
opened in January 2004 by the Bush administration which includes 9 million acres of
land reserved for oil and gas drilling. There have been petitions to more strongly
protect the yellow-billed loon, but these attempts have failed leaving it listed as
only a candidate for the protection of the Endangered Species Act (Cummings).
Future drilling on the North Slope by Shell will further endanger the valuable
breeding grounds of the yellow-billed loon (Holland, 2012).

Furbush 11

Works Cited
Alaska, S. o. (1990, February). Details About the Spill, Final Report, Alaska Oil Spill
Commission . Retrieved June 06, 2012, from Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee
Council: http://www.evostc.state.ak.us/facts/details.cfm
Brookshier, J., Louther, M., & Senturia, B. (2002, November). Yellow-billed Loon.
Retrieved June 06, 2012, from Seattle Audubon Society: Bird Web:
http://www.birdweb.org/birdweb/bird/yellow-billed_loon
Camphuysen, K. (2011, March). Seabirds and chronic oil polution: Self cleaning
properties of gulls, Laridae, as result of colour-ring sightings. Marine Polution
Bulletin, 62(3), 514-519.
Couper, D., Dorrestein, G., & Beades, P. (2008). Oil Spill Response. Retrieved June
06, 2012, from Marine Wildlife Rehabilitation:
http://www.issdublin.org/iss_via/vets/BPrewash.html
Cummings, B. (n.d.). Saving the Yellow-billed Loon. Retrieved June 06, 2012, from
Center for Biological Biodiversity:
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/birds/yellow-billed_loon/index.html
Delehanty, S. (n.d.). Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. Retrieved June 06,
2012, from United States Fish and Wildlife Services.
Field, R., North, M. R., & Wells, J. (1993). Nesting Activity of Yellow-billed Loon on the
Colville River Delta, Alaska After the Exxon Valdez Spill. Wilson Bulletin, 325332.
Holba, C. (2010). Exxon Valdex Oil Spill: FAQ's, Links and Unique Resources at
ARLIS. Washington Post. Anchorage: Alaska Resource Library and Information
Services.
Holland, A. (2012, May 4). Energy Development in the Arctic: Threats and
Opportunities. Retrieved June 06, 2012, from Consumer Energy Report:
http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/2012/05/04/energy-development-inthe-arctic-threats-and-opportunities/
NOAA. (2008, September 15). NOAA Report Says Olympic Coast National Marine
Sanctuary In Fair-to-Good Condition, But Facing Emerging Threats.
Retrieved June 06, 2012, from National Oceanographic and Atmospheric
Administration:
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080918_olympiccoast.html
Organization, I. R. (1989, March 24). 1989 Exxon Valdez-Alaska. Retrieved June 06,
2012, from International Bird Rescue: http://blog.birdrescue.org/index.php/1989/03/1989-exxon-valdez-alaska/
Russel, R. R. (2002). Pacific Loon. Retrieved June 06, 2012, from The Cornell Lab of
Ornithology: All About Birds:
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pacific_Loon/lifehistory
Sheppard, J. (2012, May 19). A Walk in the Woods. (R. Furbush, Interviewer)
Turrrini, T. (2005). Special Ecological Sites in Alaska's Prince William Sound and
Copper River Delta. Retrieved June 06, 2012, from Prince William Sound

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Regional Citizen's Advisory Council:
http://www.pwsrcac.org/docs/d0024600.pdf
Welte, S., & Frink, L. (1988). Rescue and Rehabilitation of Oiled Birds. In D. H. Cross,
Waterfowl Mangement Handbook (p. 13.2.8). Washington D. C.: United States
Fish and Wildlife Service.
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