[June 2010. Birds that depend on the Gulf of Mexico are at constant risk from oiling as they feed, bathe and swim in the waters that sustain them] [American White Pelican] [Photograph of an American white pelican in the ocean. It is brown from oil.] [Roseate Spoonbill] [Photograph of an oiled roseate spoonbill perched in a tree with its wings out.] [Royal Tern] [Photograph of several royal terns standing on the beach. Brown marks of oil are visible on some.] [Sandwich and Forster’s Tern] [Photograph of oiled Sandwich and Forster’s terns standing in the sand.] [Sanderling] [Photograph of a sanderling covered in oil standing in the sand.] [Herring Gull] [Photograph of an oiled herring gull on the beach.] [Snowy Egret] [Shots of oiled snowy egrets.] [Laughing Gull] [Photograph of a laughing gull covered in oil.] [Perhaps the most devastating images to date have been those of the Brown Pelicans completely mired in oil.] [Their large size, robust plumage, and feeding technique of diving headlong into the ocean, have made them especially vulnerable.] [Photos of brown pelicans completely covered in oil.] [Cornell Lab teams have documented 14 bird species with oiled plumage to date.] [Photographs by Ben Clock]