Oil spill
The main cause of wildlife exposure to oil is oil spills. Oil spills occur most commonly near oil-shipping routes, pipelines, wells and refineries. Oil spills have a more drastic impact in the late winter and early spring months, because large populations of overwintering birds gather near shores. The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (also known as the BP Oil Spill) was estimated to have killed over 8,000 birds, sea turtles and marine mammals from April to September in 2010.