ANIMAL Migration

What is migration???? Animal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individuals, usually on a seasonal basis.  Found in all major animal groups. The trigger for the migration may be local climate, local availability of food, the season of the year or for mating reasons.

Type of animal migration: There are many animal migration: sea turtles, baleen whale, birds, salmon, zooplankton, sharks, tuna, pinnipeds.

Sea turtles These charismatic ocean wanderers make incredible migrations in the open sea.   Some leatherback turtles have been recorded traveling across the Pacific Ocean between Indonesia and the U.S., an incredible distance of more than 12,000 miles in 647 days. One of their most impressive feats is the ability to navigate back the beach where they were born to spawn.

Baleen whale While many of the world's species of marine mammals migrate, none go the distance like giant baleen whales.   The gray whale (which travels as far as 14,000 miles round trip annually) and the humpback whale (which travels as far as 16,000 miles round trip annually) migrate a greater distance than any other mammal on Earth. Each species travels to warmer tropical waters during the winter months to mate and give birth. Then they swim to the rich colder waters of the Arctic or Antarctic to feed for the summer.

Birds About 1,800 of the world's bird species are migratory. Some of these journeys are among the longest in the world.   The tiny Arctic tern (pictured here) undertakes nature's longest migration, spanning as many as 44,000 miles annually as it zigzags the distance between the Arctic and Antarctic. (Sooty shearwaters deserve an honorable mention for making a similar journey.) Seabirds like the albatross spend more of their lives flying than they do at rest, and bar-tailed godwits undertake the longest non-stop flight of any bird, between New Zealand and China. Penguins also migrate, and they deserve credit for making their incredible journey through the ocean, rather than through the air.

Salmon One of nature's most impressive migratory animals is the salmon. They are impressive for their ability to traverse both seawater and freshwater during their journey.   Salmon are capable of traveling hundreds of miles inland via rivers and waterways, and will even ascend thousands of feet up mountain streams to return to the waters where they were born.

Zooplankton Zooplankton are the countless numbers of organisms that float in the water column of the world's oceans and seas and includes organisms as diverse as jellyfish, krill and juvenile fish.   Their migration is different because it moves up and down through the ocean's depths rather than traversing a landscape (although they can do this, too!). Known as vertical migration, the movement of zooplankton rivals the seasonal migration of more famous migratory species such as caribou or Arctic tern. Despite their tiny size, some zooplankton swarms swim a vertical distance of 3,000 feet nearly every day in the continual search for food.

Sharks Many shark species travel thousands of miles through open water  every year, scouring the ocean for food.   The great white shark is a long-distance traveler, with some making the journey  across the Indian Ocean, between South Africa and Australia and back again, over the course of a year. The larger, gentler whale shark is another known migrant, though its migratory patterns are not well-understood.

Tuna Tuna are among the ocean's fastest swimming migratory fish. At least one tuna has been recorded making a 25,000-mile journey (three Pacific Ocean crossings over the period of just 20 months) between the U.S. and Japan.   The amazing migration was recorded by the 10-year Census of Marine Life, an undertaking that includes experts from 73 countries.

Pinnipeds Pinnipeds such a seals, sea lions and walruses also are known for making incredible sea journeys.   Fur seals are known to swim the equivalent of a fourth of the way around the world every year. Elephant seals have been recorded making a 20,000-kilometer migration every year, and they also dive deeper than any other seal. Walruses have a migratory route through icy Arctic waters, a journey that has been a mystery to scientists until recently.