Oilapalooza: Through the Eyes of our Network

Hi! I’m Anna Goldman, the Wildlife Museum Curator and Marine Wildlife Care Coordinator at Cal Poly Humboldt. As a new member of the OWCN, I didn’t know what to expect from Oilapalooza and honestly, was a little nervous. Cal Poly Humboldt (previously California State University) is the longest standing organization (29 years!), and with the title, came some pressure, in my mind. A bit of imposter syndrome if you will. I have only been in this position for 2 years, and still feel like I’m on a learning curve. 

Prior to my position at Cal Poly, I lived in Hong Kong for 7 years where I completed my PhD and subsequent post-doc with the University of Hong Kong. My thesis was centered around trophic interactions between insects and mammals, eventually developing into designing novel detection methods for Chinese pangolins (Manis pentadactyla) in Hong Kong. My primary experience leading up to my PhD was through natural history museums, namely the Field Museum in Chicago where I was the mammals preparator for some years. 

I have done plenty of necropsies, but rehabilitating wildlife is something I don’t have much experience with. I do, however, manage a facility at Cal Poly that, in the event of an oil spill, is activated to specifically to clean and rehabilitate oiled birds. Luckily, there haven’t been any oil spills that require the facility to be activated- yet. Before you ask, Yes. This is something I am constantly worried about. That was, until Oilapalooza. Well, still worried… but less so. 

At Oilapalooza, the keynote speaker, Tiffany Wentz-Root, a therapist who kindly and sympathetically lectured us on the simple and necessary steps of self-care. Coming from the realm of academia, I had to pause and make sure I was in the right place. She mentioned self-care as something you have to take small “sips” of throughout the day, a lot like staying hydrated. This really resonated with me and I think it really resonated with the rehabbers in this audience as well. We don’t find ourselves in this field because it pays well. We find ourselves here because we are compassionate and generous with our energy. That generosity doesn’t always end up with us slowing down to care for ourselves. This talk really set the tone for the remaining day and a half. 

While the rest of the first day was eye opening and very educational- I’m doing my best not to write a novel. The second day was a full deployment drill at the California Living Museum (CALM). Oddly, the evening before I couldn’t sleep because I realized I was having some “performance” “anxiety”. Yeah, it was odd for me too. I was so worried about not knowing what to do or being tested in ways I wasn’t cut out for. This feeling of not belonging really got in my head. Which just emphasized how important Tiffany’s keynote really was. It didn’t help me sleep that night, but it did help me reference and identify this feeling later. It’s not uncommon to feel like an imposter. It’s only uncommon if we don’t talk about it. 

Day Two- Deployment drill. This was a full on, fake news report, no plan other than the hazardous waste spill sealed envelope that we open as we go drill. I don’t think most people know what a “drill” actually entails. Heck, I don’t even know. With the exception of the hazardous waste and chemical covered animals, everything was played out as if it was really an oil spill. I was stationed at the Intake and Processing facility. While there were others that were stationed outside where the “event” occurred. We received animal carrier boxes, with a figurine of the animal afflicted and a sealed envelope with any/ all of the information collected. Some came in with very little intake data- no location, no affliction, no time, etc. Others came in with collection location, date/ time, type of oil, percentage and depth of oil coverage, injuries, etc. 

It was our job to input the data into the database OWRMD, collect and input new information and record anything noteworthy. We then sent the animal to be stabilized and fed. All this data collection and entry is very close to what I do for the natural history museum. It was like someone dropped me in a pool and I remembered “Oh, right! I’m actually a really good swimmer!”.

The drill itself was very impressive and complicated. Even with certain people walking around handing out white pieces of paper, “injections” which were meant to throw the possibility of something going wrong- Water heater failure, circuit unable to hand full electric load of the fully operational facility, needle poke, avian flu, etc. It was so much fun. Part of what made it such a fun experience was working with the community of people. Everyone was willing to work together, patiently and kindly for this common cause, even if it was all fake. It felt and feels like such an honor to be part of this team and a part of a massive network like OWCN. I’m so very thankful for their willingness to have me as well. 

Anna Goldman

Wildlife Museum Curator and Marine Wildlife Care Coordinator at Cal Poly Humboldt