Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
French Frigate Shoals
Surrounded by over 230,000 acres of coral reef, the French Frigate Shoals con-
tains the monument's greatest variety of coral. It's also where most of Hawaii's
green sea turtles and Hawaiian monk seals breed. The 67-acre reef forms a classic
comma-shaped atoll on top of an eroded volcano, in the center of which 120ft-high
La Pérouse Pinnacle rises like a ship. Small, sandy Tern Island is dominated by an
airfield, which was built as a refueling stop during WWII. Today, Tern Island has a
USFWS field station housing scientific researchers and volunteers.
Laysan Island
Not quite 1.5 sq miles, Laysan is the second-biggest of the NWHI. The grassy island
has the most bird species in the monument, and to see the huge flocks of Laysan
albatross, shearwaters and curlews - plus the endemic Laysan duck chasing brine
flies around a super-salty inland lake - you'd never know how close this island
came to becoming a barren wasteland.
In the late 19th century, humans began frequenting Laysan to mine guano (bird
droppings) to use as fertilizer. Poachers also killed hundreds of thousands of al-
batross for their feathers (to adorn hats) and took eggs for albumen, a substance
used in photo processing. Albatross lay just one egg a year, so poaching could des-
troy an entire year's hatch.
Traders also built structures and brought pack mules and, oddly enough, rabbits
for food. The rabbits ran loose and multiplied, and within 20 years their nibbling ex-
tirpated 22 of the island's 26 endemic plant species. Without plants, at least three
endemic land birds - the Laysan rail, Laysan honeycreeper and Laysan millerbird -
became extinct. Laysan finches and the last dozen Laysan ducks seemed doomed
to follow.
In 1909, public outcry led President Theodore Roosevelt to create the Hawaiian
Islands Bird Reservation, and the NWHI have been under some kind of protection
ever since. By 1923 every last rabbit was removed from Laysan, and ecological re-
habilitation began. With weed-abatement assistance, endemic plant life recovered,
and so did the birds. The Laysan finch is again common, and the Laysan duck num-
bers about 600 (another small population has been established on Midway).
Nearly the same sequence of events unfolded on nearby Lisianski Island and, to-
gether, these islands are a stunning success story.
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll was an important naval air station during WWII. It's best known as the
site of a pivotal battle in June 1942, when US forces surprised an attacking Japan-
ese fleet and defeated it. This victory is credited with turning the tide in the war's
