Midway
Journey To The Middle of the Pacific
The Midway Atoll lies in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and is the nesting ground of millions of seabirds, including many endangered species. Once a military base, it has been slowly transformed by many dedicated people into a world heritage site. However, the atoll faces tough battles every day: invasive plant species that damage the habitat of albatross and burrowing petrels often killing them; deadly plastic pollution, much of which ends up in the stomachs of chicks; climate change that causes ever larger and more lethal storms.
While these problems feel enormous, they are not necessarily too big to tackle and there are a number of people who have dedicated their lives to improving life on Midway for these incredible animals. We are journeying to Midway to document the many ways in which conservationists are bringing attention to problems affecting this tiny but vitally important bit of land, and how lessons learned here can be applied to other areas of the world.
Learn how biologists managed to bring back the endangered Short-Tail Albatross to nest on the atoll; meet Wisdom, a Laysan albatross who has been nesting on Midway for nearly 60 years; find out the strategies being used to eradicate invasive plant and animal species; discover the beauty of endangered Monk seals, sea turtles, spinner dolphins, corals and so much more.
Featured Stories in Midway
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Hawaiian Monk Seals Find a Haven On Midway
These Hawaiian monk seals are adorable, but they face some unusual threats including the presence of humans on their beaches.
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Midway Atoll: 24 Images From My Instagram Diary
While visiting Midway as a photojournalist for TreeHugger, my iPhone came in handy for keeping a visual diary of this incredible atoll. Here are the best images exploring everything from albatross chicks to plastics to plain old gorgeous beaches.
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From Bullets to Birds: Midway's Transformation to a World Heritage Site
Midway is part of the Papahānaumokuākea (say that three times fast) Marine National Monument, which was recently named a World Heritage Site.
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Tourists Get Their Hands Dirty, Set An Example For Ecotourism On Midway
The efforts of groups led by Oceanic Society illustrate that taking a little time to give back to an ecosystem goes a long way.
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Midway's Green Sea Turtles Dine on Jellyfish For Lunch (Photos)
Its not too often you get to see an endangered sea turtle that normally eats seagrass dine on Man o War jellyfish!
Tag: Midway - Page 2
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One Year Later: Midway Atoll Still Taking Tally of Tsunami's Effects
Arriving on Midway exactly one year to the day of the tsunami of 2011, we learned just how deeply its impacts were felt and are still being handled.
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From Bullets to Birds: Midway's Transformation to a World Heritage Site
Midway is part of the Papahānaumokuākea (say that three times fast) Marine National Monument, which was recently named a World Heritage Site.
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Bringing The Endangered Golden Gooney to Midway
Long-term efforts by conservationists are slowly helping to bring Short-Tailed Albatross to Midway, which has made history and generated hope for the species.
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Midway Atoll: 24 Images From My Instagram Diary
While visiting Midway as a photojournalist for TreeHugger, my iPhone came in handy for keeping a visual diary of this incredible atoll. Here are the best images exploring everything from albatross chicks to plastics to plain old gorgeous beaches.
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Midway: A Symbol of Hope for Planet Earth
Midway has moved from "bullets to birds" and our visit to the atoll reveals the incredible ecosystem that teaches us lessons on sustainability both here and globally.
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For These Beautiful Midway Island Birds, Plastic is a Food Group
"We are at a mid-way place," photographer Chris Jordan explains on the Journey to Midway blog, "on a remote and isolated island in the middle of the Pacific, 1200 miles northwest of Hawaii." Located at the apex of the Pacific Garbage Patch, the small cl
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Albatross Chicks of Midway Atoll Eat 5 Tons of Plastic Per Year, and Other Shocking Facts (Video)
We know there is a serious problems of plastics in the oceans. We also know that the birds living on Midway Atoll have become an iconic species representing this problem -- we all saw the photos from Chris Jordan detailing
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Thousands of Nesting Albatross Swept Away By Tsunami
Though most of the devastation caused by the Sendai Tsunami occurred on the northern Pacific coast of Japan, the shock of the earthquake sent ripples out deep into the ocean. 2,560 miles away, on Midway
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Bird Once Thought Extinct Now Found Nesting in U.S.
In the middle of the last century, things weren't looking good for the majestic Short-tailed Albatross. From a hardy population estimated to be in the millions just decades earlier, the bird's numbers underwent a
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Chris Jordan Takes Shots at the Trash Patch
Chris Jordan, whose past photographic compositions create dizzying perspectives on the cumulative effects of consumer culture, now has a new muse: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Jordan visited the Midway Atoll, right in the heart of the Patch to get
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