295 



Commercial game breeder's quotations on the following species show that blacks 

 sell for $3 each, scaup $30 each, goldeneyes .$10() each, and canvasbaeks $50 each. 

 No prices were available for scoters, old squaw, bufflehead, and mergansers since 

 they are very difficult, if not impossible, to raise. It is estimaited that replacement 

 costs, if replacement were possible, would run well in excess of $100,000, based 

 on current game breeder's prices. 



During the early stages of the investigation, approximately 400 live ducks, oiled 

 to varying degrees, were collected by Department personnel and shore residents. 

 Various types of cleaning agents were exi>erimented with ; many of these cleansed 

 birds were returned to the water. Some were kept penned at a game breeder's 

 farm to observe survival rates. Of 22 penned tliat were cleansed, only six were sur- 

 viving at the end of a 3-week period. Despite the efforts made to rehabilitate 

 ducks, it is felt that their chance for survival is very t^oot. 



Thames River, Con/necticut 



The information for this case study is quoted directly from the Con- 

 necticut Newsletter : of the Connecticut Audubon Council dated Feb- 

 ruary 15, 1969, Vol. 2, No. 8. 



An industrial oil barge ran aground, Thursday, January 16, 1969, on Bartlett's 

 Reef near Waterford, Conn., causing an undetermined amount of heavy 

 bunker "C" oil to be spilled in Long Island Sound. The Coast Guard apparently 

 did not hear about this spillage until Saturday despite the fact that all oil rup- 

 tures are to be reported at once. 



The beaches and rocky shore areas from Niantic to coastal Rhode Is- 

 land were blackened with large globs of gooey tar-like oil. 



The Thames Science Center, 622 William Street, New London, was notified and 

 were first on the scene with their three-man professional staff to appraise the situ- 

 ation. Several oiled-homed grebes were picked up completely covered and unable 

 to fly. Red-breasted merganser, black duck, greater scaup, common goldeneye, 

 blufflehead, surf scoter, Canada Greese, mallard, mute swan, common loon, herring 

 gull, and greater black-backed gulls were all found oiled in various stages in 

 their struggle for survival. As of January 30 the following is a summary of 

 accurate figures of birds observed by the Thames Science Center Staff. 



Species Captivity 



Common loon 



Horned grebe— _- 



Mute swan... 



Mallard 



Black duck 



Greater scaup 



Common goldeneye 



Bufflehead 



Red-breasted merganser. 



Herring gulls 



Surf scooter 



Black-back gull 



Canada geese 



White winged scoter 



Total 22 189 257 486 



On January 22, all beaches from the Connecticut River at Griswold Point, Old 

 Lyme to the Harkness Memorial State Park south of New London at the mouth 

 of the Thames River were visually checked. The only beach still with noticeable 

 oil was Harkness Memorial State which was fairly cleared of the heavy oil. A 

 policeman in Niantic said the tides cleared most oil from their beach. 



As of Friday, January 24, the Thames Science Center executive director, John 

 Gardner, summarized the situation as follows : 



"The oil pollution was not severe because of the limited volume of pollutant in 

 the water, the tendency of the oil to remain in globular form, its rapid mixing 



42-847 O— 70 ^20 



