Distressed?, forlorn, oil- or dirt- or algae-covered Great Egret (Ardea alba), at the California Morro Bay State Park Marina, Morro Bay, CA, 30 July 2010. Evidently died the next day. [[Update 31 July 2010: A sad ending - this bird (we assume it was this individual) was found dead face-down in the water the next day. Lesson learned: Make a note in your wallet: Call Pacific Wildlife Care at 805-543-WILD to report distressed birds.]] There was a great deal of stagnant detritus and algae in the adjacent corner of the marina. Photo by "Mike" Michael L. Baird, mike [at} mikebaird d o t com, flickr.bairdphotos.com; Shooting a Canon EOS 1D Mark III 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera, Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens with circular polarizer, handheld. To use this photo, see access, attribution, and commenting recommendations at www.flickr.com/people/mikebaird/#credit - Please add comments/notes/tags to add to or correct information, identification, etc. Please, no comments or invites with badges, images, multiple invites, award levels, flashing icons, or award/post rules. Critique invited. Keywords: distressed, great egret, Ardea alba, rgret, bird, oil, oil covered, contaminated, forlorn Tech note: eye catchlight seen in this image was artificially added as an adjustment brush spot in Lightroom It was our (Mike Baird & Kevin Cole) judgment (as not totally qualified docents) on (30 July 2010) that this bird should not be captured for treatment by Pacific Wildlife Care at this time... that the trauma induced could be worse than the benefit. It appeared weary and tired, but quite possibly able to recover on its own terms in nature. I encourage others to check this guy out the next few days. The image is accurately geo-tagged on Flickr, and it was photographed at the far SE corner of the Morro Bay, CA State Park Marina where the parking lot ends and the path to the peninsula begins. 31 July 2010 - Thanks to all for the stimulating thoughts and reactions - this demonstrates the power of the Internet to inform, transform, and improve, at the speed of light.