DAY 20 on MIDWAY

Wednesday December 4

            There are only three sectors left on the main island; no. 1, 2, and 6.    Breck and Martha will do six along the beach and nau paka and carefully skirt any monk seals – too many people create a disturbance for them.  Sectors one and two are considered the worst of the worst and nine of us head out by cart and “limo.”

Midway limo

We work through some ironwood first with a welcoming committee.  Do they know something we don’t?  Like maybe at their height there is a breeze and below maybe not so much?

The Committee: boobies and friagtes with a tern for good measure

            After that we spread out and head for the hills, by the end of this sector we like verbesina.  The nau paka is such a tangle you climb over, crawl under, cuss and fall until you break out into a space to count birds.  You wonder how on earth the babies will find their way, but know they will – all these birds hatched where they nest.

We lined up and each headed for the beach some distance the other side, 
wishing each other luck!

            It probably took a half hour at the end for all of us to collect up and find each other again – and guess what?  Spot checks and discussion left us with the feeling that our count in Sector Two was pretty darn accurate.  I looked at my watch to see if it was 4pm yet, time to head back for a shower and dinner.  It was 11:20, we hadn’t even had lunch! 

            So the big question we were afraid to ask – what was the afternoon going to be?  There were rumors about Sector One (more of the same) and Spit Island the only two remaining zones.  I lost interest in Spit when I learned that it is made up of what was dredged here to make the harbor – not a natural island.  I also heard and had confirmed, it is largely coral rubble, not good on ankles or knees. Actually my ankle did not hurt all morning with the ace wrap on it, I’m getting more irritation from the blister on the other foot.  It is also a water landing and I can’t really get excited about working wet and salty.  Maybe two weeks ago it would have been more appealing.  After lunch leaders from the three groups conferred to determine our destiny. 

Discussion of Destiny 

They decided to do Spit today but it is entirely optional as they don’t need many people.  I will be very interested to know how many birds are nesting this year.  Of the thousand chicks last year, only four lived through the tsunami.  Who returned this year to try again?  

As it is, we had this afternoon off and it was nice to just put our feet up!  We leave tomorrow night, we have all morning to finish sector one which is similar to what we did this morning and the afternoon to pack (or snorkel).  Time will tell.
This evening a research scientist, Scott Shaffer from San Jose State University did a talk on tracking the albatross.  Interestingly, the Black Foot and Laysan nest together here at Midway but do not feed together.  The Laysan go farther north and somewhat west while the Black Foot head more east toward northern California and Canada.  These research projects are what produces the data to allow refuges to further protect the populations.  


To me, the significance in the broader and longer picture is that by watching their behavior in consecutive years has given us huge clues as to the effect of conditions like El Ninos and La Ninas on ocean productivity, in this case the Pacific.  Because the birds have to go farther to eat it effects their ability to feed the chicks and becomes an indicator that with global warming these trends are no longer ten years apart but are happening more frequently.  In the end, this is a small, very connected planet we live on.  When we watch populations in nature fail, humans are a short step behind.