The Toronto Wildlife Centre is asking local nature lovers to keep a lookout for oil-slicked animals along the Humber River, following a recent spill in the city’s north end.

The Toronto Wildlife Centre's (TWC) wildlife rescue team was first called to the Albion and Weston roads area on July 30 to collect three oil-coated Canada geese from the banks of the Humber; they returned the following day to rescue an additional three ducks.

Nathalie Karvonen, TWC’s founder and executive director, said that while all six rescued water birds have now been washed and are in stable condition, the centre’s rescue staff are afraid there could be more animals affected by the oil spill still out there in need of care.

“The spill is working its way down the Humber, and I know our rescue team leader was concerned about people being on the lookout for sightings all the way down to Lake Ontario,” she said in an interview, noting that all aquatic and semi-aquatic animals who call the Humber home could be at risk, including ducks, geese, muskrats, mink, beaver, water snakes, frogs and turtles, among others.

“Water birds tend to be the ones you notice first, but I personally have wrestled a gigantic, 50-pound beaver coated in diesel oil out of a river during an oil spill before, and they’re certainly just as affected as water birds.”

As for the spill’s origins, Hydro One officials confirmed it was caused by a fire that broke just after midnight on July 28 at the Finch transformer station, near Finch Ave. West and Signet Drive in North York.

In an emailed statement, the company said its cleanup efforts began immediately after evidence emerged that oily water created by efforts to extinguish the blaze had seeped into nearby Emery Creek and the adjoining Humber River.

“Hydro One takes its responsibility to the environment and the local community very seriously,” the statement reads, noting that Hydro One environmental staff and emergency spill contractors were immediately dispatched to the scene to begin cleanup efforts.

In consultation with Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP), Hydro One installed absorbent booms at several “key points” along the Humber downstream of the spill — including Eglinton Ave., Dee Ave., Albion Rd., Sheppard Rd. and the Emery Creek outlet to the Humber River.

Additional measures, such as filtration systems, deflection booms, absorption pillows and a diversion dam, have also been put in place.

“(Hydro One) is committed to a full and complete remediation of any site that has been impacted by our operations,” the statement continues, noting that the company continues to work with MECP and city officials in response to the event.

In the meantime, Karvonen and her fellow wildlife rescuers at TWC are asking for the public’s help in identifying animals who may have come into contact with the oil.

“In the past, especially this time of year when the weather’s warmer, sometimes we get reports of oiled animals for weeks following a spill,” she said.

While oil-slicked geese and ducks are at risk of losing their waterproofing, leaving them susceptible to hypothermia and at possible risk of drowning, animals that ingest the oil could fall ill with GI (gastrointestinal) tract issues, Karvonen added.

“So, whether they’re visibly oiled or not visibly oiled, we’re asking people to be on the lookout for animals acting strangely,” she said.

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“Maybe they look miserable, or they’ve been sitting in one place for a really long time, or they’re doing a lot of preening or grooming because they’re trying to get the oil off of them. Those are all examples of what to look for.”

To report a sighting, call TWC’s Wildlife Emergency Hotline at 416-631-0662. To donate, go to www.torontowildlifecentre.com/donate/.