super powers with wings

Incredible routes and distances traveled… We know a little more every day about the talents of these birds which cross the globe.

Written by Paul Maloon January 1, 2025, at 11:34 a.m.

Sometimes, technology is good: thus, we are currently experiencing a real “golden age of ornithology”estimates journalist and ornithologist Scott Weidensaul. The translation of his work “Le Monde à tire-d’aile” has finally been published by Actes Sud.

Miniature sensors and geolocation

Indeed, the miniaturization of sensors on board birds and geolocation now make possible observations previously unheard of in terms of precision. Enough to allow the scientists who follow them, via ground radar networks, to reveal the true superpowers of migratory birds. Champions of the sky with an infallible instinct that allows them to perform wonders during their annual migrations. Enough to realize to what extent we had until then underestimated the immensity of the physical capacities of migratory birds.

Throughout their global odyssey, they can complete the equivalent of 126 consecutive marathons without drinking or eating, like the tiny Anadyr sandpiper (30 cm and 250 g) which goes from Australia to Korea. Or not sleeping for weeks, or even using quantum physics to orient yourself at night in the fog… Thus, the Arctic tern travels a whopping 80,000 km during its annual migration from one pole to the other .

Read also – How do migratory birds protect themselves from the sun?

Incredible feats

Anyone who has observed birds since childhood offers to experience these migrations from the inside and to literally be among the birds. Because we must also imagine the physiological capacities that allow these birds to accomplish such flights. Thus, to cross the Himalayas by flying at an altitude of 7,200 m, bar-headed geese have developed a respiratory system capable of renewing the air at very high altitude. Some birds can become lighter by shrinking their digestive and reproductive organs during flight.

Similarly, in order to complete a seven-to-nine-day nonstop flight between Alaska and New Zealand, ruddy godwits accumulate the equivalent of 17 times more fat in their metabolism before leaving. Excess fat that they will burn throughout the flight without becoming dehydrated. We also know that to orient themselves, these great migrators have a magnetic compass in their eyes, allowing them to find your way constantly thanks to the earth’s magnetic field, day and night.

The world at a glance: The global odyssey of migratory birds
Scott Weidensaul, one of the greatest American science popularizers, invites readers to experience these migrations from the inside and to be, finally, a bird among birds.
To discover on Cultura.com

Birds, residents of the world

In The world on the wingScott Weidensaul also warns of the impact of climate change on the routes and performances of these birds. Tomorrow, will they be able to continue traveling? Indeed, recalls the author of this work, the damage caused to the planet by human activity has repercussions on the migratory connectivity of these birds, which are essentially inhabitants of the world. They “are not the residents of a given place, but the inhabitants of the whole. Creatures whose complete life cycle must be understood if we are to have any chance of preserving them against the assaults they endure at every moment and at every stage of their migratory journey. »

However, political will makes it possible to prevent the decline of migrants, who are also among the first victims of climate change. Whether in China, India or the United States, decisions to ban urbanization or felling have made it possible to reverse the course of things. Enough to allow new generations of birds to pass on their genes and their migratory instinct.