Aloha everyone!
I'm happy to introduce tonight's guest writer, our teammate Matt McDole, on his first experience at Kuaihelani.
“This mission is my first time on Kuaihelani during the albatross nesting season. Living daily among this many nesting seabirds is truly staggering. The birds don't nest just in fields. They're everywhere, in every nook, cranny, and wayside along your daily route. I knew the albatross would be large, but I didn't realize that even the chicks are still huge birds. Some are larger than a cat or a small dog. The chicks nest in one spot on the ground and basically don't leave.
Having this many large animals around you on a daily basis means they become your neighbors. You usually see the same chicks during your daily routine, and can't help but notice things about them. I noticed one small chick in particular who was always just to the right of the door where I usually enter the building where we are staying. Over the last few days, I started to notice that it was making progress shedding its down. I've started to silently greet this bird every time I passed by and check on its progress. One morning, the chick didn't lift its head in its usual hello when I passed. I stopped and took a closer look, and it didn't even seem to be moving. I worried that it might be dead or dying. Sometimes the parents aren't able to feed their chicks enough, or they die from disease or other causes. But when I returned at the end of the day, I found my fluffy little neighbor not only revived but standing proud and tall with its still-downy wings fully outstretched into the trade winds, as if to say: ‘I'm a grown up bird — look at my grown up wings!'
It's gratifying to be living and working so closely with animals we are fighting to save. It makes things feel real and concrete. Just today, two of our team members separately disentangled albatross chicks they came across in their off-duty hours. When I pick up small pieces of plastic from the beach, especially if they are near an albatross chick's nest, I'd like to think I am making it less likely these specific pieces of plastic end up in the stomach of this specific chick. I think this is my favorite PMDP mission so far, because we are not only working, but also living, so near to our fellow creatures.”
Day 10
We are officially a week into our mission with our full team, and the work is settling deep into our bones. We feel it when we force our eyes open before sunrise, in our sore muscles as we bend to pick up each piece of plastic, and in the relief of finally kicking our feet up at the end of the day.
Today demanded a particular kind of grit. Wind whipped across our faces while cold drizzle soaked our clothes and chilled us through. Despite this, it’s impossible to have a bad day out here. Through it all, we laughed often, listened to the deafening chorus of seabirds overhead, and cleaned a whole lot of beach. The majesty of this place never loses its hold on us. Every day out here is a reminder of how deeply grateful we are to care for this place.
Papahānaumokuākea is so remote that very few people in the world will ever have the chance to experience it firsthand. One of PMDP’s core values is bringing this place to the people – making it tangible enough that others can feel what it’s like to stand here with us.
So, in the middle of our workday, we paused our cleanup efforts to host two livestream events: one for students and one for the public. Thanks to Starlink technology, we were able to livestream directly from the field for the very first time. Together, we walked viewers along the shoreline of Eastern Island – from bustling albatross colonies to stretches of beach heavily burdened with marine debris. Students and community members got to hear directly from our team and watch the work unfold in real time.
We were blown away by the response. More than 40 classrooms, representing 475 students from across the main Hawaiian Islands, registered to join us, along with more than 80 community members for the public livestream. Mahalo nui loa to everyone who tuned in, supported us, and shared in this experience. Our team had so much fun connecting with people back home and sharing a place that means so much to all of us. If you missed it, we will have the recording of the public livestream available and sent out in the coming days.
By the end of the day, we wrapped up the final section of Eastern Island and cleaned more than half of Spit Island. We are starting to see the finish line ahead and that feeling is carrying us forward.
With aloha,
Lauren & the PMDP crew