Bird Flies 7,987 Miles Over Pacific Non-Stop, Breaking World Record

We know that birds like warm places, even continents to migrate to. And it seems that they can do anything to reach their destinations, including covering extremely long distances.

A bird who shares the aerodynamic build of a “jet fighter” has recently flown more than 7,500 miles (12,000 km) across two overseas: from Alaska to New Zealand and did this without taking a break in any destination. The entire flight has been tracked by Global Flyway Network, an organization that collaborates with scientists working on long-distance migrating shorebirds.

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It must be tiring to fly all the long way just in a lump, as we can tell by the way the bar-tailed godwit shrinks its entrails to get some load off its the way. 

The bar-tailed godwit carried a 5gm satellite tag on its back to provide the track information for the scientists, starting from September 16. And the tag lets scientists witness many destination changes from above.

“They are flying over open ocean for days and days in the mid-Pacific; there is no land at all. Then they get to New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea where there are quite a few islands and, we might be anthropomorphizing, but it really looks like they start spotting land and sort of think: ‘Oh, I need to start veering or I will miss New Zealand’,” Dr. Jesse Conklin, from the Global Flyway Network told The Guardian. 

The actual distance the satellite recorded was 7987 miles (12,854 km), however, given the fudge factor, the estimated coverage turns out approximately 580.7285 miles (12,200km), equaling 224 hours in total. And that distance clearly beats the previous record of 7257 miles (11,680 km) set in 2007. 

“They have an incredibly efficient fuel-to-energy rate,” Conklin added. “They have a lot of things going for them. They are designed like a jet fighter. Long, pointed wings and a really sleek design which gives them a lot of aerodynamic potential.”

This long-way taker proves once again that nature is way more capable than our human-made technologies. 

H/T: The Guardian