Dr. Lauren McGough spent the previous winter on Midway Atoll counting over half a million active albatross nests. Nearly 70% of the world's Laysan albatross and one third of black-footed albatross nest on Midway, not to mention over a million bonin petrels and endangered species such as short-tailed albatross, monk seals and the Hawaiian green sea turtle. Humans and albatross live in close quarters on this 2.4 square mile Atoll, giving visitors insights into avian behavior that one might never see up close and in person. With its pivotal WWII history, and currently serving as an important emergency runway for airplanes crossing the Atlantic, this little island remains of outsized importance to the world.