Malden Island importance as a protected area for breeding seabirds. The island is designated as the "Malden Island Wildlife Sanctuary". In 2014 the Kiribati government established a fishing exclusion zone around each of the southern Line Islands (Caroline (commonly called Millennium), Flint, Vostok, Malden, and Starbuck). Malden Island is located south of the equator, south of Honolulu, Hawaii, and more than west of the coast of South America. The nearest land is uninhabited Starbuck Island, to the southwest. The closest inhabited place is Tongareva (Penrhyn Island), to the southwest. The nearest airport is on Kiritimati (Christmas Island), to the northwest. Other nearby
Kiritimati of feral pigs exists. They were once plentiful and wreaked havoc especially on the "Onychoprion" and noddies. Pig hunting by locals has been encouraged, and was highly successful at limiting the pig population to a sustainable level, while providing a source of cheap protein for the islanders. There are some "supertramp" lizards which have reached the island by their own means. Commonly seen are the mourning gecko ("Lepidodactylus lugubris") and the skink "Cryptoblepharus boutonii"; the four-clawed gecko ("Gehyra mutilata") is less often encountered. There are some crustaceans of note to be found on Kiritimati and in the waters immediately adjacent.