The 5 Longest Bird Migrations

By Britta Foulis

On the 13th of May each year we celebrate World Migratory Bird Day – in honour of this day we thought to share with you the 5 longest bird migrations that happen each year. Enjoy!

The Sooty Shearwater

Named after the way their wings skim the water surface, these birds hold their wings stiffly and without any movement to glide low and at a top speed over the sea.

Credit: NZ Birds Online

Distance traveled: 64 000 km / 40 000 miles all the way from New Zealand, across North America and South America making their way past Antarctica and ending their journey in Africa.

Arctic Tern

This beautiful bird is famous for it’s migratory journey which covers two migrations a year!It flies each year all the way from the Arctic, where it breeds, to the Antarctic and back again.

Credit: National Geographic

Distance traveled: 33 000 km/ 20 000 miles from North America (Arctic) across Europe, Africa, South America and ending in Antarctica.

Pectoral Sandpiper

The Pectoral Sandpiper is a small, chunky bird that spends most of its life wading about in weedy areas. Males are known for their showy performances in breeding season and have large air filled sacs that they puff up to impress females.

Credit: Creagrus

Distance traveled:28 000 km / 17 000 miles from Asia (Siberia) across North & South America and ending their trip in Australia.

Pied Wheatear

These uniquely patterned birds are known for the inverted “T” shape that features on the male’s tails.

Credit: BirdPhotographers.Net

Distance traveled: 18 000 km / 11 100 miles

Short-tailed Shearwater

The Short-tailed Shearwater is Australia’s most commonly found sea bird. These birds are known to feed their newborn chicks for only 2 or 3 days before leaving them for weeks on end to search for food, sometimes over 1 500 km away!

Distance traveled: 17 000 km / 10 000 miles

Read more about birding in Tanzania here.

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