April is National Volunteer Month, and at Friends of Midway Atoll, we are honoring the incredible community of volunteers who help make conservation possible at Kuaihelani.
Volunteers are at the heart of every success story — from those working on the ground at Midway Atoll to the dedicated board members, off-island supporters, and others who generously give their time throughout the year. Their efforts are essential to protecting the wildlife and habitat of this sacred place.
Throughout April, we shared videos on social media by USFWS volunteer Dan Rapp featuring on-island volunteers, highlighting their daily routines & efforts, which are featured below. The continued work of volunteers on-island every six months is made possible through the generosity of our members and donors. Your membership directly helps sustain these vital volunteer initiatives and ongoing conservation efforts.
Your support makes sure FOMA continues to support Kuaihelani.
‘Akihikeʻehiʻale (Tristram's Storm Petrel) have a new favorite hangout: artificial nesting burrows designed to mimic their natural homes. Thanks to Leona Laniawe’s ingenious design using marine debris buoys and PVC pipes as shown here, and hard work from USFWS volunteers/staff installing them, this year 20 ‘Akihikeʻehiʻale pairs used the artificial burrows — a record high for Midway!
On Kuaihelani, Koloa pōhaka (Laysan Ducks) rely on a carefully maintained network of seeps, ponds, and catchments to survive.
Maintaining these lifelines takes constant care. Each week—twice weekly starting in May—USFWS volunteers conduct seep checks across both islands, watching closely for signs of botulism, as shown in Dan Rapp's video.
If a duck is found sick, it begins an critical response: treatment with antitoxin and fluids, followed by recovery in a dedicated “duck hospital.” After four days of care, survivors are banded, vaccinated, and released back into the wild. This is what conservation looks like on the ground. Check out our previous blog for more videos & photos on cleaning seeps.
At Kuaihelani, each chick in productivity monitoring receives a temporary colored “poultry band” once they start leaving the nest. These numbered bands help volunteers match chicks back to their original nest—even as they roam.
Volunteers also give each chick a quick visual check, noting feather development as they grow from partially to fully feathered. Once their legs are strong enough, chicks receive their permanent metal and auxiliary bands for life.
It’s careful, hands-on work that helps protect every chick’s story.
For over 20 years, with several million dollars invested by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) & the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), plus support from YOU through FOMA, the effort to eradicate invasive Verbesina encelioides from Midway Atoll has steadily advanced—and today, we’re closer than ever.
This highly invasive, non-native plant once threatened vital seabird nesting habitat. But thanks to dedicated staff and volunteers, the number of plants found each year continues to decline.
🎥 In this video, volunteers are seen transecting for incipient weeds—like Verbesina—carefully surveying the landscape to stop it from spreading. Mahalo to USFWS volunteer Dan Rapp for capturing this important work in action.
To see more photos, videos, & info on Verbesina removal, visit our previous blog.