Last weekend I did the most incredible thing that one could do on 4th of July weekend- I went flying in a C-130 with the Coast Guard. You can read about my adventures over at Deep Sea News, where I am a visiting contributor.
Hell hath cometh to the Gulf of Mexico. These scenes from a flyover of the Gulf oil spill are reminiscent of some horrible end-of-days film, or a war zone. And right now, the Gulf is a war zone. Every day, its inhabitants fight for their lives, as they get coated in oil. On his flyover of the oil spill, Hurricane Creek Keeper John Wathen saw at least 100 Dolphins in the oil, some dying, and a sperm whale covered in oil all around it’s blow hole.
You may want to grab your box of tissues for this one.
Live in one of the Gulf states? Want to help out with the oil spill? Have an iPhone? Well, there’s something you can do to help out.
MoGO is a free iPhone app developed by scientists at UMass, that allows iPhone owners to become citizen scientists. The purpose of the app is to study the hazardous impact of the BP oil spill to the environment and animals. Information uploaded through the app helps scientists locate and assist oiled wildlife, and keep track of the impact of the oil spill on the environment. The data collected through the app will help scientists map the impacts of the oil spill and mobilize efforts to protect and restore vital habitats for fish and wildlife.
By taking photos of oiled, injured and dead marine and coastal wildlife; tar balls on beaches; oil slicks on water; and oiled coastal habitats, you can help wildlife experts find and rescue oiled and injured animals. Your photos are geo-tagged and added to the MoGO database, and you are connected to the Wildlife Hotline to report your observations so that trained personnel can respond. Uploading photos to the database alone doesn’t guarantee that workers will respond, so make sure to use the “Call Wildlife Hotline” option in MoGO to report oiled and injured wildlife, so wildlife experts can be notified.
Whatever you do, DO NOT try to help the injured or oiled wildlife on your own. Oil poses serious health risks to humans, and workers involved in oil spill and wildlife cleanup have gone through special hazmat training. Also, if you are not trained in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, trying to help out could result in further stressing or injuring the animal, which we don’t want.
Hey folks,
Soooooo I have a bunch of cool posts coming up over the next few days (and sooooo much to update you all on!), but in the meantime, check out my guest post on the spotted ratfish over at Oceans 4Ever.
-Allie
Credit: Allie Wilkinson
Today is the fifth year that the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) celebrates Nature Photography Day, a day to celebrate the natural world through photography and advance the cause of conservation.
- Check out some nature photography tips from PhotoNaturalist.
- Read up on what conservation photography is at the International League for Conservation Photographers (ILCP) website or on my other blog.
- Submit your photos to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) Photo Contest or The Nature Conservancy Photo Contest.
- Oh yeah…..and you can also check out my photography gallery!
