A
Red-Necked Phalarope migrated 16,000 miles, breaking the record for longest
European bird migration, according to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
The epic round-trip journey, took the well-traveled bird across two
oceans. The bird flew from the island of Fetlar in Shetland, Scotland, across
the Atlantic, south down the eastern seaboard of the United States, across the
Caribbean, and Mexico, ending up off the coast of Peru. After wintering in the
Pacific, it returned to Fetlar following a similar route. Amazingly, it's not the longest bird
migration ever, but the feat is still a record-breaker for Europe.
Scientists tracked the red-necked phalarope's travels using a geolocator device
that weighs less than a paperclip. Ten of the birds were outfitted with the
device while on the Scottish isle.
The
researchers couldn't believe how long and far the birds traveled. They conducted the study just trying to figure out where the birds spent
the winter. Little did they know that these were world-class fliers.
"To
think this bird, which is smaller than a starling, can undertake such an
arduous journey and return safely to Shetland is truly extraordinary,"
Malcie Smith of the RSPB said in a press release. "This tiny tracker has
provided a valuable piece of the puzzle when building a picture of where
phalaropes go when they leave our shores. We hadn’t realized that some Scottish
birds were traveling thousands of miles to join other wintering populations in
the Pacific Ocean."
Info from www.livescience.com
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