Amazing Journeys: Spring Migration

Each spring, millions of birds make the perilous journey from South and Central America to their breeding grounds as far north as the Arctic. Even tiny hummingbirds travel thousands of miles, with little rest or food. One of nature's most awe-inspiring phenomena, migration has long fascinated and inspired its human observers.

Long Distance Fliers

• The Arctic Tern is the World Champion for migration. They migrate from Antarctica to Alaska and Canada as well as Greenland, Iceland, and northern Eurasia. Some migrate over 20,000 miles a year--that's enough to earn them a frequent flyer ticket on most airlines! To learn more, visit the Project Puffin site.

Non-stop Flight

• Some Alaskan Bar-tailed Godwits have the longest non-stop flight of any migrating bird. According to some biologists, the birds stay airborne for almost one week, making a 6,800-mile beeline from wintering grounds in southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand to their breeding range in Alaska, Siberia and Scandinavia. To learn more about this species, view its Watch List profile.

Tiny Titans

• Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have one of the longest migration paths of any hummingbird. Despite its tiny size, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird journeys more than 1,850 miles from its wintering grounds in Central America to nest in the eastern United States. To learn more about hummingbirds, visit Audubon At Home.

High Fliers

• The Bar-headed Goose is believed to be the highest flying bird, having been seen at up to 33,382 feet. This bird, which breeds in Central Asia, migrates through the Himalayan range. The air at these heights is so thin that helicopters cannot fly there and kerosene cannot burn. The Bar-head has a slightly larger wing area for its weight than other geese, which is believed to help the goose fly so high. For more information, read the Audubon Magazine article.

Early Birds

• The Eastern Phoebe is one of the first migratory birds to arrive in the spring in the northeastern United States. They often appear in March, well ahead of the peak migration for most forest songbirds (in May), and they are one of the last to leave in fall, with the peak of migration in October.

A Different Drummer

• Unlike most migratory birds, Lawrence's Goldfinch moves mostly to the east and west, rather than northward and southward, between seasons. The Lawrence's Goldfinch seems to have no loyalty to its breeding areas, being present in large number in a locality one year and absent the next. Its nomadic movements are probably related to availability of water and seed crops. To learn more about this species, read its Watch List profile.
  
  
• The Bluethroat is one of few of birds that breed in North America and winter in Southeast Asia. This small elusive thrush nests in Alaska and northern Eurasia, and then migrates to southern Asia.

Group Tours

• As a group, wood warblers probably travel more in mixed company than any other single family of North American birds. In spring and fall, the flocks are likely to be made up of the adults and young of several species. Sometimes swallows, sparrows, blackbirds, and some of the shorebirds also migrate in mixed flocks.

References:

• Audubon Magazine
• Kenn Kaufman's Field Guide to Birds
• National Audubon Society
• Sibley Field Guide to Birds
• Smithsonian National Zoological Park
• United States Geological Survey
• University of Alaska at Fairbanks Geophysical Institute