Mystery oil slick kills sea birds

An air search has failed to spot an oil slick which has affected hundreds of sea birds from an important colony, the RSPCA said yesterday, as rescue workers spent their fourth day rescuing oil-covered birds from the east Yorkshire coast.

The stricken birds - mainly guillemots, razorbills and puffins - were first noticed on Thursday and since then almost 500 have been recovered from a stretch of coastline from Flamborough to Withernsea, and 22 have been found dead. Paul Stilgoe, the RSPCA chief inspector, said that 489 birds, thought to come from a colony at Flamborough Head, have been recovered so far and cleaned up before being sent to wildlife centres. The cause of the oil spill is not yet known.