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A28 SCIENCE
Monday 11 noveMber 2019
Pacific bird refuge struggles as ocean garbage patch grows

By CALEB JONES of the problem.
MIDWAY ATOLL, Northwest- "Not only are our beaches
ern Hawaiian Islands (AP) getting it, but also our alba-
— Flying into the uninhabit- tross will bring it and feed
ed Northwestern Hawaiian it to their chicks," Goodale
Islands, Midway Atoll ap- said.
pears out of the vast blue Albatross spend much of
Pacific as a tiny oasis of their lives at sea feeding
coral-fringed land with pris- and flying thousands of
tine white sand beaches miles across the oceans
that are teeming with life. before returning to Midway
But on the ground, there's each year to lay eggs and
a different scene: plastic, raise their young.
pollution and death. "So we estimate about 5
With virtually no preda- tons (4.5 metric tons) of
tors, Midway is a haven for plastic being brought to
many species of seabirds Midway every year just by
and is home to the largest adult albatross feeding it to
colony of albatross in the their chicks," Goodale said.
world. The albatross tend to seek
But Midway is also at the out squid eggs that at-
center of the Great Pacif- tach themselves to floating
ic Garbage Patch, a vast pieces of plastic, which is
area of floating plastic col- why so many birds are eat-
lected by circulating oce- In this Oct. 22, 2019, photo, plastic sits in the decomposed carcass of a seabird on Midway Atoll ing the material, Clark said.
anic currents. The Hawaiian in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. And it's not just the seabirds
Islands act like a comb that Associated Press that are harmed by ocean
gathers debris as it floats plastic. Endangered Ha-
across the Pacific. A recent superintendent for Papa- servation area and was in- ecosystem ingests to huge waiian monk seals and
analysis found that the hanaumokuakea Marine scribed in 2010 as a UNES- fishing nets that gather green sea turtles can die
patch is accumulating de- National Monument, which CO mixed World Heritage plants, animals and other while entangled in plas-
bris at a faster rate than sci- Midway is part of. They "fill site. debris while bulldozing tic nets. Sharks and other
entists previously thought. their bellies up with plastics "Papahanaumokuakea is across fragile coral reefs. apex predators eat smaller
Midway is littered with bird instead of food and even- both a biologically rich and "The estimates are that fish that feed on microplas-
skeletons that have brightly tually either choke or just culturally sacred place," there's about 57,000 tic. Whales drag fishing line
colored plastic protruding don't have enough room Clark said. "The Hawaiians pounds of marine debris and buoys behind them
from their decomposing for actual nourishment and call it a place of abun- that washes ashore within during their long migrations
bellies. Bottle caps, tooth- perish." dance, or aina momona." this part of the archipelago across the world's oceans.
brushes and cigarette light- Sharp plastic pieces can But circulating currents annually," Clark said. It's important to understand
ers sit in the centers of their also perforate their intes- now bring an abundance U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the relationship between
feathery carcasses. tines and esophagus. of plastic and other trash biologist Kelly Goodale the oceans, marine life and
"There isn't a bird that Papahanaumokuakea, from all around the Pacific lives and works on Midway, humans, Clark said.
doesn't have some (plas- which quadrupled in size Rim to Hawaii's beaches. the site of a decisive World She shared a Native Hawai-
tic)," said Athline Clark, the under President Barack The debris ranges from tiny War II battle , and said the ian proverb: "Ma o ke kai
National Oceanic and At- Obama in 2016, is the microplastics that nearly plastic that washes ashore pili ai kakou." It means, "The
mospheric Administration's world's largest marine con- every animal in this marine there each year is just part ocean connects us all."q
Nevada reviews possible mining threat

to unique wildflower

By SCOTT SONNER flower as an endangered changed with new inter-
RENO, Nev. (AP) — Nevada species. est in mining exploration
is launching a comprehen- The state Division of Natural for lithium deposits in the
sive review of the status of Heritage has been monitor- area, Crowell said. Lithium
a desert wildflower that isn't ing the status of the plant is a key component in the
known to exist anywhere since it was discovered manufacturing of batteries
This June 1, 2019 photo shows the rare desert wildflower Tiehm's
buckwheat in the Silver Peak Range about 120 miles southeast else in the world because in 1985 in the Silver Peak for electric cars such as the
of Reno, Nev., the only place it is known to exist in the world. of concerns about poten- Range, about 120 miles ones made at Tesla's bat-
Associated Press tial effects from new mining (193 kilometers) southeast tery factory east of Reno.
exploration. of Reno, said Bradley Crow- "Nevada is home to more
The move comes after the ell, director of the Nevada than 150 plant species that
Center for Biological Diver- Department of Conserva- live exclusively in our state,
sity sued the Trump admin- tion and Natural Resources. including the one-of-a-kind
istration last month to try The delicate wildflower Tiehm buckwheat," Crowell
to block mining operations typically grows about 2 said Thursday in announc-
they say would wipe out feet (half a meter) tall with ing the new status review
the Tiehm's buckwheat. The white, cream or yellow that will begin this month.
conservationists also have blooms. "Input from the public and
filed an emergency peti- It hadn't faced significant the use of the best avail-
tion with the U.S. Fish and threats in the past due to its able science is critical to
Wildlife Service to list the remote location, but that's this process," he said.q