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Great journeys

On long migrations shore birds such as Red knots sandpipers

and turnstones always congregate at traditional places to refuel :

During spring migration In US at Delaware bay on Atlantic coast

1.5 million Waders heading north drop down to rest and feed ;

Huge flocks of semi palmated Sandpipers continue their spring

migration after feasting on eggs of horse shoe crabs which
emerge in thousands from sea each depositing 80000 eggs in
sand ; In fact 50 000 Sandpipers alone eat 6 billion eggs
weighing 27 tons .

And flocks of Waders and Gulls between 100000-250000 to a

beach crowed noisily to a beach;

In one foray Albatross may journey up to 14500 km , covering

900 km in 24 hours, and flying day and night with few stops at
speeds of about 80 km/h .
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Leatherback turtles-World’s largest turtles are air breathing

reptiles yet , use deep sea ways to travel on long and unexpected
migrations such as those from Surinam in S. America to
Scotland 6960 km away .following contours of under water
canyons and mountains diving down up to 3280 ft . .

Arctic Terns embarking upon the longest journeys known-from

‘pole’ to ‘pole’ nest in Arctic and fly to Antarctic and back
every year –a round trip of 40,000 km .by different routes .;
Shear waters cover 32000 km a year on their migration around
Pacific ocean .

In the Atlantic the Sand bar Shark ventures up to 3200 km ;

And Green turtles undertake journey up to 2200 km .;

Monarch butterflies travel 2000-3000 km from Canada to

Mexico wintering on butterfly trees, mate in spring and head
north laying eggs as they go and die-and the offspring continue
the journey north .
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Each spring the Grey Whales set out on a 20400 km round trip
from California to Arctic and back .

Epic journeys are a way of life for the Caribou of arctic Canada.
Hundreds and thousands of Caribou travel 1000 km in each
Direction between summer breeding grounds of Tundra and
wintering area of Taiga.

Common eels undertake an unusual migration swimming

thousands of Kms as ‘silver eels’ from river to sea to spawn and
die ;The eggs develop into larvae which travel to rivers and on
entering fresh water the larvae change into ‘glass eels’; As they
swim up stream their colour deepens and they become
‘yellow eels’ and start return journey after 6-7 years .when time
for reproduction comes and they head for sea .