US to strafe crucial nesting area for 3m birds with poison to eradicate mice

Midway Atoll to be bombarded with rodenticide after scientists and volunteers discovered seabirds with open wounds

Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean was the scene of a crucial naval battle in the second world war. It is now set for a very different sort of conflict - a bombing campaign to rid the area of mice.

The US government is moving ahead with a plan to strafe Midway with poison aimed at eradicating mice that are on a deadly rampage through one of the world's most important sites for seabirds.