Having been fortunate enough to have visited to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, I can attest that there are few avian critters as goofy-looking (on land), graceful (in flight) and lovable as the Laysan albatross.
The accompanying video clip, posted Monday by Midway Journey, reveals a glimpse of what's to come in a high-definition film titled "Midway," directed by Chris Jordan. It shows weary albatross parents waddling shoreward to embark on their first forays to find food after weeks on the nest.
But the large sea birds of Midway -- which hosts about 71% of the world's nesting population -- face peril because of plastic pollution that's picked up in the ocean by the adults, and passed to babies on the atoll.
Midway Journey states on its website that the atoll "serves as a lens into one of the most profound and symbolic environmental tragedies of our time: the deaths by starvation of thousands of albatrosses who mistake floating plastic trash for food."
Jordan says the upcoming film is "more than just a documentary or a film about wildlife at risk. 'Midway' brings us an opportunity for us to look at our world in close-up, to see how our lives are impacting the planet, and to find new approaches to moving forward."
To be sure, the plight of the albatross lends contemporary meaning to the phrase, "Battle of Midway." The film, which remains under production, ought to be both inspirational and enlightening.
You can follow Wisdom, a female Laysan Albatross and also the oldest known wild bird in the 90-year history of North American bird banding on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/wisdomthealbatross.
I returned to the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge on DEC-1-2011, and I just hatched a new chick on FEB-05.
Posted by: Wisdom the Laysan Albatross | Feb 19, 2012 at 04:49 PM