A tagged bar-tailed godwit has set a world record for the longest flight ever recorded in bird species.
According to Earth Sky on October 27, the “record holder” is a 5-month-old juvenile of the species Limosa lapponica, commonly known as the bar-tailed godwit. It flew non-stop from Alaska to Ansons Bay in Tasmania over 11 days, from October 13 to October 24, covering a distance of 13,560 km.
The bar-tailed godwit is a wading bird belonging to the family Scolopacidae. (Photo: Featherbase)
Scientists tracked the bird as it crossed various islands in the Pacific, including Vanuatu and New Caledonia, but it did not stop at any location.
The previous record for the longest flight by a bird was also set by a bar-tailed godwit last year. In that year, a male bird of this species, tagged with the code 4BBRW, flew from Alaska to New Zealand, covering a total distance of 13,050 km.
Expert Eric Woehler from Birdlife Tasmania stated that such long flights are “particularly risky” for the bar-tailed godwit because this species cannot land on water.
“If a bar-tailed godwit falls into the water, it will die. This species does not have webbing on its feet, so there is no way to escape from the water,” Woehler explained.
Due to its inability to rest for food and water, experts estimate that the bird lost at least half of its body weight during its record flight.
However, the bar-tailed godwit has a “special ability” that allows it to cross oceans. This species can shrink its internal organs such as the liver, kidneys, and digestive tract by 25% to create additional space for fat storage. At the end of the journey, they can return to their original size.
