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<DIV><FONT size=2><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><FONT face=Arial>For
Immediate Release:<SPAN
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</SPAN><SPAN
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</SPAN><SPAN
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</SPAN><SPAN
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</SPAN>Contacts:<SPAN
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<DIV class=MsoNormal style="LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; MARGIN-RIGHT: -0.5in"><FONT
face=Arial>October 11, 2003<SPAN
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</SPAN>Melissa Lowe (Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary): 508
349-2615</FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal style="LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; MARGIN-RIGHT: -0.5in"><FONT
face=Arial> <o:p></o:p></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt"><FONT
face=Arial>Causes of Death Among Seabirds and Effects of Bouchard Oil Spill
Studied by Tufts University and Subject of Upcoming Lecture at Mass Audubon in
Wellfleet. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt"><FONT
face=Arial><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-INDENT: 0.5in; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face=Arial><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">South Wellfleet, MA</B>. –
Since March 2003 volunteers from the Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife
Sanctuary have been walking Cape Cod beaches each month to look for dead birds.
These efforts are part of the Seabird Ecological Assessment Network (SEANET), a
collaborative project launched by Tufts Center for Conservation Medicine /
Wildlife Clinic (Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine) to monitor the
northeastern coastal corridor of North America. At the Tufts Wildlife Clinic,
calls are often received about large numbers of dead and dying birds on our
coast, but until this point, there has not been any organized reporting of these
events, as there is for marine mammals and sea turtles. Numerous threats
contribute to these mortality incidents, such as diseases, fisheries operations,
persistent organic pollutants and metals, and oil pollution. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-INDENT: 0.5in; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><FONT
face=Arial><B>Drs. Mark Pokras and Rebecca Harris from Tufts University will
present a lecture </B>about these monitoring efforts<B> on Saturday, November 1
at 2 p.m.</B> The talk will be held <B>at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife
Sanctuary</B>. Pokras and Harris will report on the patterns and causes of death
determined so far, including an update on the effects of the Bouchard oil spill
in Buzzards Bay that occurred on April 27, 2003. The majority of the birds
killed in this spill were common loons, as the timing of the spill hit when many
loons were staging along the coast, preparing to migrate inland. Endangered
piping plovers and roseate and common terns were also arriving on nesting
beaches and islands just as the oil spill occurred, so monitoring during the
breeding season was also an important task. SEANET volunteers are contributing
information on the lasting effects of oil on marine birds, which can be detected
by completing internal and toxicological examinations of dead birds that may not
show external signs of oiling. Long after the cleanup efforts are complete, the
effects of oil can linger, illustrating the importance of long-term monitoring.
Pokras and Harris will talk about how these efforts are expanding
geographically, and will discuss using seabirds as indicators of marine
environmental health.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal
style="TEXT-INDENT: 0.5in; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; MARGIN-RIGHT: -0.5in"><FONT
face=Arial>The lecture is scheduled for Saturday, November 1, 2 p.m. and will be
held at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. Cost for the lecture is $4 for
Mass Audubon members and $6 for non-members. Information on becoming a volunteer
to walk beaches regularly in search of beached birds will also be provided.
Volunteers who participate in this study can attend the talk free of charge.
Registration is required and reservations can be made by calling the Wellfleet
Bay Wildlife Sanctuary at 508-349-2615. </FONT></DIV>
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align=center><FONT face=Arial>###<B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoNormal style="LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><I
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<DIV class=MsoBodyText style="LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt"><FONT face=Arial>The
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary is located on the west side of Route 6,
immediately north of the Eastham/Wellfleet town line.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Trails are open daily 8 am to dusk.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Sanctuary admission is free for members;
$5 adults, $3 children for non-members. Call (508) 349-2615 for
information.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV class=MsoBodyText style="LINE-HEIGHT: 150%"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt"><FONT
face=Arial><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN> </DIV></FONT>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>****************************************<BR>Melissa
Lowe<BR>Education Coordinator<BR>Massachusetts Audubon Society<BR>Wellfleet Bay
Wildlife Sanctuary<BR>PO Box 236, South Wellfleet, MA 02663<BR>Phone:
508-349-2615 Fax: 349-2632<BR></FONT><A
href="mailto:mlowe@wellfleetbay.org"><FONT face=Arial
size=2>mlowe@wellfleetbay.org</FONT></A><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>