The Arctic tern migrates farther than any other animal

Each year the Arctic tern flies from its Arctic breeding grounds to the seas around Antarctica and back — a round trip of more than 70,000 km, the longest annual migration of any animal. By following summer from one pole to the other, the tern sees more daylight in a year than almost any creature alive.

The terns don’t take a straight line. Tracking studies found they zigzag across the Atlantic to ride favourable winds, which lengthens the route but saves energy over the months-long journey from Greenland to the Weddell Sea.

Over a lifespan that can exceed 30 years, an Arctic tern may travel well over 1.8 million miles — the equivalent of flying to the Moon and back several times.

For a bird that weighs about as much as a tennis ball, it is one of the most remarkable feats of endurance in the natural world.