First Oiled Birds Found Near Texas Oil Spill Site

The U.S. Coast Guard announced Sunday that workers cleaning up Texas Galveston Bay Oil spill have found the first oiled birds in the area.

Fewer than 10 birds were found, some of which were dead. The recovered birds have been transferred to a rehabilitation facility established by the Unified Command, according to the agency.

The Galveston oil spill, which has released nearly 168,000 gallons of product in this busy area, could threaten some 50,000- 70,000 birds that visit the area at this time of the year, Examiner had earlier reported.

The spill was a result of a collision between Kirby Inland Marine oil barge and a cargo ship- that occurred in The Houston Ship Channel, a lifeline that connects oil barges in the Gulf Coast and refineries in inland. The busy waterway was closed Saturday, Reuters reported.

The incident left 60 vessels backed up near the entrance of the Bay, abcnews reported.

"The collision did release a significant amount of oil," said U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Brian Penoyer in a news conference Sunday, nbcnews reported.

According to U.S. Coast Guard, the clean-up continued through Sunday and currently some 24 response vessels are skimming oil in the area.

"Changing currents, winds and weather conditions have necessitated response officials to further extend containment and oil recovery plans further into the Gulf of Mexico and south along Galveston Island," the agency said in a statement.

Jim Guidry, president of Houston-based Kirby Inland Marine Corp, said that the company is bearing the cost of cleaning up the oil spill, abc news reported.

Previous research has shown that oil spills such as the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill can lead to several changes in marine life and birds living near the affected area.