1 May 2007 Marine Debris

It was a dark and stormy day.

Specks of snow dance cross heated window glass panes. Ominous clouds kiss the ocean horizon. A grey cloaked spirit skims icey water. The waves whisper, "Laysan, laysan albatross.”

The waves whisper,”Laysan,laysan albatross.” Photo by Gavin Brady

Shade of grey smudged blended

Over there

look port

then aft

now gone

A wave of grey among waves of grey

There is a Native saying that goes something like this

’You don’t see animals. They choose to be seen by you.’

A Laysan Albatross chose to reveal itself to me today. I have already written a creature feature on these magnificent birds. But I have not yet told you about them, their place in this ecosystem and why they are so very special.

*Albatross are the lithe athletes of the bird family. *

Albatross are the lithe athletes of the bird family. They have enormous wing spans, and are most efficient fliers. They have to be. They travel hundreds and hundreds of miles from nestlings huddled on small Hawaiian atolls and islands to the Bering Sea potlatch extravaganza.

Food. Squid, small fish, flying fish eggs.

Or so they think.

Floating objects are food to albatross. Anything that floats in a perfect natural world (before plastics were invented) is food.

Somebody didn’t bother telling the albatross that plastic marine debris is NOT food.

So plastic bottle caps, plastic spacers from oyster farms, plastic bottles, plastic lighters, plastic fishing line and net, plastic toothbrushes, plastic rope, plastic bags, plastic six pack binders, plastic ANYTHING and EVERYTHING are on the menu at Chez Pacific Ocean. And the albatross eat their fill.

These loyal birds follow their tubular beak to where they have always found food. And they eat. And they eat. And they eat.

The plastic enters their proventriculus, a food processing and storage compartment. And there it stays. Their body cannot break it down into a concentrated rich oily glob. It’s PLASTIC.

Albatross parents vomit the concentrated oily gob, rich in energy and plastic straight into the gut of their young. Photo by Susan Middleton, ‘ArchipelagoA chain of many islands.’ National Geographic.

They do not know their food is fake

Their chick is hungry for goodness sake

So parent birds pass this to chicks

Many die, the plastic sticks.

Albatross parents vomit the concentrated oily gob, rich in energy and plastic straight into the gut of their young. The plastic not only takes up space in their stomach, but it also hurts them. Albatross are victims of our material world.

Albatross are victims of our material world.

How YOU can help?

Recycle as much as you can. Many plastics, glass, oil, batteries, and cans can be recycled. Participate in a cleanup in your neighborhood. Remember that land and water are connected. Reduce the amount of garbage you make. Reuse items whenever possible. Try to walk lightly on the earth.

One ocean one voice one earth.