A coastal mudsnipe (Limosa lapponica) has been recorded flying 13,560 kilometers between Alaska and Tasmania’s Ansons Bay, making the longest nonstop migratory flight ever measured. This long migration is not only a demonstration of the birds’ amazing abilities, but also gave scientists and environmentalists a chance to highlight the threats to the survival of these winged adventurers.
The coastal mudsnipe is one of hundreds of bird species that breed during the short but productive Alaskan summer before the freezing winter arrives. Some only fly as far as the tropics, while others fly as far as Australia or New Zealand. This distance is an epic journey for any bird, but the snipe doesn’t even stop on the journey.
The Pūkorokoro Miranda Naturalists’ Trust has been using satellite trackers to track New Zealand immigration for years. Last year, the 13,050 km record was broken. The audience, placed earlier this year on a teenager born in the Alaskan spring, changed the situation.
But instead of going to New Zealand, this bird made a sharp right turn in the Tasman Sea to land in Tasmania. The flight took 11 days.
Sean Dooley of BirdLife Australia said the baueri coastal mudsnipe subspecies has a wide range in coastal eastern Australia, but Tasmania’s breeding grounds are the furthest they’ve gone. So, if the new record is broken once again, it probably won’t make much of a difference.
Still, this bird was probably not alone. Mudsnipes travel in large flocks both to avoid predators and to facilitate flight by taking turns following each other like cyclists in the peloton.
Interestingly, while most woodcocks fly south in a single flight, they are one of many species that stop in the Yellow Sea, taking a longer route up the Asian coast. The development in the region, especially the damage to the coastal plains, has had a devastating effect on migratory bird species. While the Baueri snipe is currently in relatively good condition, they are still classified as endangered. However, their close relatives, the menzbieri, who migrated from Siberia to Northwest Australia, are considered critically endangered.
While the Ramsar Convention aims to protect wetlands used by migratory birds, BirdLife Australia is running a campaign to save one of the key Australian areas threatened by L. lapponica baueri’s proposed development plans.
Satellite tracking has changed our knowledge of bird migrations. “We used to think they were on course,” Dooley said in a statement. “But there isn’t much of a place to land [in the middle of the Pacific].”
But the record-breaking bird flew over Vanuatu. Dooley notes that the lands the birds traverse on their route are often not good feeding grounds for these birds. However, snipes were seen on some Pacific Islands gathering strength to stop and possibly start the journey over.
Trackers, like other migratory species, cannot answer the great mystery of how coastal mudsnipes know which way to go. Whether the record-breaking bird always went to Tasmania or just decided to change course on its way to New Zealand is similarly mysterious. “They’re definitely sensitive to atmospheric conditions,” says Dooley. “We’ve seen some make their way into Moreton Bay and return a long way after encountering bad weather.”
Birds feed on pinworms and mollusks that live in the mud of coastal wetlands, accumulating so much fat that they have to reduce the size of their digestive organs when ready to fly. Adults leave Alaska 4-6 weeks before juveniles. Whatever the benefit for early departures, Dooley says those weeks of less competition for food likely gave young birds a chance to recharge for this legendary flight.
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