Bar-tailed Godwit

migration · arctic birds · ocean journey · waders

Impossibly long legs. Bar-tailed godwits have long, slender legs that help them wade through mudflats and estuaries searching for food like bristle-worms and shellfish.

Arctic breeders. These birds breed on the cold Arctic coasts and tundra from Scandinavia all the way to Alaska, taking advantage of the long summer days and abundant food.

Dramatic breeding colors. When it's breeding season, the bar-tailed godwit turns a striking red color, making it easy to spot among the Arctic landscape.

Champion migrator. One subspecies flies nearly 12,000 kilometers non-stop from Alaska across the Pacific Ocean to New Zealand, the longest non-stop flight any bird makes, without eating a single meal during the journey.

Epic round trip. The complete migration journey covers over 29,000 kilometers in a year as the birds fly back and forth between their Arctic breeding grounds and their winter homes in Australia and New Zealand.