Every year, many of us jet off to somewhere a little warmer, for one or two weeks of paradise before we return to our everyday lives. It’s a luxury that we’re lucky to have.

Every year, billions of birds migrate from their winter home to their summer home (and vice versa) as they seek more seasonable climates. Unlike vacationers, for the birds it’s a matter of survival.

For if the birds were to stay put when a once safe and comfortable home becomes hostile, they would almost certainly die.

So it’s in their nature to put their bodies through the gruelling journey, to seek a better life, a safer life, for them and their families.

It’s a gruelling journey, with birds travelling thousands of miles to reach their destination, and sadly there are huge mortality rates as plenty of birds do not complete their migration.

There are many reasons for this: exposure to severe weather and extreme conditions, exhaustion and starvation en route, as well as disorientation, obstacles, and predation as they pass through human territories.

But they are determined to do what they can to survive – it’s a feat of sheer will, focus and athleticism that many of us could barely even comprehend – buoyed by the innate desire to seek out a safe home.

The magnitude of what birds achieve every year was epitomised by a five-month-old bar-tailed godwit back in 2022, whose trip from Alaska to New Zealand took a wrong turn, with the bird clocking in a record-breaking 13,560 kilometres over 11 days, and losing half of its body weight during the continuous flight.

In an article for the BBC, Birdlife Tasmania’s Dr Eric Woehler explained just how risky this unintentional detour was for the small bird, who instead made history and was welcomed into Tasmania with open arms:

“It’s a journey that could have been deadly for the lucky young bird, but it managed to cross the vast Pacific Ocean safely.”

The godwit had previously been tagged by researchers, meaning that its audacious journey to reach the safe shores of Tasmania was recorded, leaving the wildlife community thoroughly impressed at how the tiny bird determinedly flew day and night for eleven days.

Though far from its friends and family, there was more than enough food and shelter to go around as the godwit settled in before its next migration eventually began.

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