Some animals, such as the Galápagos tortoise (Geochelone nigra), live their entire

lives in one place. Others, such as the monarch butterfly (Sanaus plexippus) and
Arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea), migrate. Animals have adapted to migrate based on
seasonal or geographic variations. Humans have added barriers to this process by
building roads across major migration routes or eliminating or minimizing food
sources along the way. Efforts to reduce human impacts include creating migration
corridors, installing wildlife-friendly fencing, protecting breeding beaches, or
building animal only bridges or tunnels across roads.

Arctic Tern
An arctic tern soars over Iceland. These small birds have one of the longest annual
migrations of any animal on Earth. Every year, arctic terns migrate from the Arctic
Circle to the Antarctic Circle—a round-trip journey of about 30,000 kilometers
(18,641 miles).

With a barrel-shaped body and pectoral fins protruding like oversized wings, the
humpback whale is not designed for speed. Yet the marine mammal, which can reach
lengths of 50 feet, is known for its impressively long travels between warm-water
breeding grounds in the winter and cold-water feeding grounds during the summer.

Humpback Breaching
A humpback whale breaches the surface off of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. A breach is a
large leap where most of the whale's body leaves the water. Marine biologists are
not certain why whales breach. It may be a form of communication between members of
the same social group, or it may be a feeding behavior.

Animal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individual animals,

usually on a seasonal basis. It is the most common form of migration in ecology. It
is found in all major animal groups, including birds, mammals, fish, reptiles,
amphibians, insects, and crustaceans.