I often hear such a sentence: no matter how beautiful the scenery along the way, it is not as beautiful as the way home. Both humans and animals always have special feelings for going home. In particular, migratory animals that have been traveling between the two places for a long time treat each migration as a homecoming, moving from one place to another, spring to autumn, and enjoying each other.
There is such an animal, it is not too much to say that it is a thousand miles away from one end to the other, across the whole earth, their whole life is either migrating or on the way to migration. That's the story we're going to tell today – the long journey of arctic terns.
Arctic tern, a species of the genus Tern. It is between 33-40 cm in length and has a wingspan of between 76 and 85 cm, classified by size, and is a medium-sized bird. The plumage is mainly gray and white, the feathers are mainly gray and white, the beak and feet are red, the forehead is white, the top of the head and the back of the neck are black, and the cheeks are white.
They are widely distributed in most parts of the world. It is mainly active in coastal, island and swampy areas. It is a bird that lives in a social manner. It feeds mainly on fish and crustaceans. Their migration route is the longest and farthest of all known birds.
As mentioned above, the Arctic Tern is a bird with the longest and farthest known migration route, so how long and how far is it? According to statistics, they have migrated more than 40,000 kilometers. That is, between the North Pole and the South Pole.
From one end of the earth to the other, how far is that, yes, it is so steel! Because the Arctic tern is not big or small in terms of size, it is relatively light, so it can adapt to long-distance flight. Arctic terns are lightweight and can fly long distances.
As early as 1982, British scholars tracked the juvenile of an Arctic tern, tied a test ring to its feet, and according to the data transmitted, it had flown more than 22,000 kilometers in 3 months, with an average of more than 240 kilometers per day, one of the longest journeys known.
This aroused great interest from British scholars, who asked the question: How far did arctic terns fly during their migration? Some countries have accumulated tens of millions of pieces of information so far. It is understood that most migratory birds fly very far. Its champions are the Arctic Terns, which fly just 700 kilometers from the North Pole to Antarctica, making a round trip of 40,000 kilometers.
Whenever the direct point of the sun is located on the Tropic of Cancer, when the northern hemisphere is in summer, Arctic swallows breed in the Arctic Circle. Their light bodies stretch across the surface of the sea, gliding through the waves of the Arctic Ocean, from which they prey on fish, shrimp and crustaceans. Until the winter of each year, the weather gradually became colder, and the Polar Night Phenomenon appeared in the Arctic. At this time, the shores were covered with thick ice. Arctic terns are about to prepare for their journey to the South Pole.
They are so powerful that they set off from the North Pole in droves, all the way south, across the equator, to the waters near Antarctica. Continue to enjoy the sunshine that Antarctica brings. Day after day, as winter begins in the southern hemisphere, they pack up their packages and fly to the North Pole. At this time, the Arctic is in the middle of summer. Every year, according to statistics, the number of miles per time reaches tens of thousands of kilometers.
Scientists have pointed out that many migrating animals have seen, including many similar birds. But when it comes to such migrations and long journeys, Arctic Yan'ou is absolutely second to none. Why do they fly so far, simply because they are small? Scientists have drawn the conclusion by comparing them with other birds: the tern's tail is forked, and its wings are narrow and long. These wings have a much greater buoyancy than other birds when flying in the air.
At the beginning of March of each year, terns from the Arctic begin to prepare carefully, because winter in the Antarctic is approaching, and before they take off, they undergo a metamorphosis: they shed their old feathers and re-grow new ones (some say facilitate long-term flights). Everything is ready to start from the South Pole, fly over southern Africa, then turn around and cross the entire tropics, along the coastline of West Africa all the way to Europe, and finally north to the vicinity of the Arctic. The total distance is nearly 20,000 kilometers. If you see flocks of birds flying in the sky, they're almost there.
So such a long journey, will not encounter predators? There will definitely be! In addition to being good at flying, Arctic terns are also known for their bravery. In large numbers of Arctic terns, there will always be the idea that "non-my species must have different hearts" and often attack each other. Coincidentally, this kind of attack is limited to the inside, and when encountering predators, they will unite and the muzzle of the gun will be united. Even the most powerful predators, they are invincible with two fists and four hands, and they can't stand the greeting of a flock of terns, which is why they have been flying for such a long time and the route is not easy to be preyed upon. They spend most of their lives in flight.
There are data that show that the distance of the Arctic tern can reach 2.4 million kilometers in a lifetime, and the average distance between the moon and the earth: 384,000 kilometers, which shows that the arctic tern can go back and forth to the earth several times, and even if humans have an airplane, it is difficult to go back and forth between the two poles, which shows the flight resistance of the arctic tern! In May of each year, they breed again, and in winter, they begin a new round of sailing.
After understanding the migration routes of Arctic terns, we will be surprised to conclude that the Arctic is there in the summer, and the Antarctic flies to the South Pole in the summer. Spend your whole life in the light. In 2014, Tencent Maps' latest logo is designed with the prototype of the Arctic Tern, giving the brand connotation of having dreams and daring to explore.
Not just the spirit, but more noble qualities extracted from spiritual habits. Arctic terns have toiled tirelessly to fly across the earth for the sake of light, just to be able to enjoy the summer sunshine. This is an inspiration for generations of young people, never give up, pursue goals, although there are ups and downs, but can move forward. In the famous Seven Stars anthology, there is a praise for the Arctic tern:
Flying around the polar regions,
Two summers, spring, autumn and winter to the year.
Round trip of 80,000 miles,
All my life I've been on the road.
Every journey is full of challenges; every challenge is destined to be difficult. But arctic terns use their persistence and tenacity to tell everyone: we can be indomitable for the sake of light, and what about thousands of mountains and rivers, as long as you have a dream, it will certainly be realized. We can all be Arctic terns, and as long as there is light in our hearts, the goal will only be on the road and will not disappear! I think that's probably the spirit and strength that arctic terns bring to us.