Over 1,000 birds died in oil spill after Russian attack on Pivdennyi port

As a result of a large-scale spill of vegetable oil, which occurred due to the attack of the Russian Federation on the port infrastructure in the area of ​​the port of Pivdennyi.

This was reported by Ivan Rusev, a doctor of biological sciences and an employee of the Tuzlivski Limany National Park.

According to him, due to cold weather conditions, part of the oil quickly settled to the bottom of the Black Sea, contaminating large areas of benthos. But during storms, these bottom sediments rise again into the bottom layer of water.

“According to our estimates, more than 1,000 birds of various species died in the Odesa Bay, mainly pirnikoz. Since the oil hits the birds brutally – glues the feathers together, destroys its natural protective layer, the bird cannot fly out of the water. It quickly gets wet and eventually overcools. Trying to clean its feathers, the bird actively swallows oil, which leads to its accumulation and intoxication, which destroys the liver and suppresses the bird’s immune system,” the ecologist noted.

In particular, on January 27, during an inspection of the spill site in the national park, several spots with oil with a total area of ​​up to 5,000 sq. m were discovered.

“It should be noted that the distance of the emissions from the accident site is about 150 km – and this indicates a wider scale and nature of the pollution. During the inspection, dead birds were found on the seashore,” said Ivan Rusev.

Recall that a mass death of seahorses is also recorded in the Black Sea off the coast of Odesa. Ecologist Vladislav Balinskyi noted that the cause of the death is called the ingress of vegetable oil into the sea after strikes on port infrastructure near the port of Pivdennyi.

Recall that on December 24, 2025, an oil leak was recorded in the port of Pivdennyi as a result of Russian attacks.