Migration Flights Test Bird Stamina It has long been known that
migrating birds embark on particularly long and grueling
journeys when they cross the oceans. What hasn’t been known for
sure is whether or not they somehow stop along the way – until
now that is. A Bar-tailed Godwit has been bestowed with the
title ‘endurance champion of the animal kingdom’ after
completing his epic 7,200 mile flight across the Pacific Ocean
nonstop. It’s no secret that Bar-tailed Godwits undertake an
annual migration from Alaska to Australia and various islands in
the southern hemisphere each year to breed. What scientists
really wanted to know was if they made pit-stops along the way.
That was the goal behind a recent study wherein nine Bar-tailed
Godwits (Limosa lapponica baueri) were fitted with electronic
tags before setting off into the sunset on their mammoth
migration flights. The birds flew between 4,355 miles and 7,258
miles, depending on which route they chose to take, with their
journeys lasting 6-9 days correspondin