Chronic oiling of marine birds in California by natural petroleum seeps, shipwrecks, and other sources

- Seabirds in California are affected by chronic petroleum oiling.
- Natural petroleum seeps are the primary source of chronic oiling.
- The majority of birds affected are diving birds.
- A seasonal trend in oiling may be related to wave energy from large storms.

We assessed temporal and spatial patterns of chronic oiling of seabirds in California during 2005-2010, using data on: (1) live oiled birds reported to the Oiled Wildlife Care Network (OWCN) from throughout the state, and (2) dead oiled birds found during systematic monthly beached-bird surveys in central California. A mean of 245 (±141 SD) live miscellaneous oiled birds (not associated with known oil spills) were reported to the OWCN per year, and 0.1 oiled dead birds km−1 per month were found on beach surveys in central California. Chemical fingerprinting of oiled feathers from a subset of these birds (n = 101) indicated that 89% of samples tested were likely from natural petroleum seeps off southern and central California. There was a pronounced peak during late winter in the number of oiled birds reported in southern California, which we theorize may be related to large storm waves disturbing underwater seeps.