We’re watching “Planet Earth 2” – a masterful production narrated by the one and only Sir David Attenborough. And, from a recent episode, the stories of the Murrelet and the Laysan Albatross stuck with me.
The Murrelet is a bird that does something absolutely ridiculous once it is born. Newborn chicks walk to the sea (they are too young to fly) in the middle of the night and then follow their parents on a 1000 kilometer journey to find food.
Again, that’s 1000 kilometers.
It speaks – at once – to just how little we know about true hunger and how incredible so many of the creatures that inhabit our planet are.
The second is the story of the Laysan Albatross. These seabirds are on remote Hawaiian islands. And the biggest challenge they face now is… plastic.
These birds rely on their parents for food and the food their parents bring inevitably has plastic in it. So, their survival now depends on their ability to vomit these pieces out. And it was wild to see a little bird vomit an electronic part out.
Again, incredible. And poignant.
This spurred reflection on our lifestyles. And while there is no easy solve on any of this, it just led to a conversation about the importance of doing the little things – composting food, reusing plastic bags, minimizing the use of plastic where possible, and root for “The Ocean Cleanup” to succeed.
There are no simple solves.
But there’s definitely action we can take.
