birdsoup

The Arctic Tern holds the record for the longest migration, nesting above the Arctic Circle and then traveling south to spend the winter below the Antarctica Circle, an annual roundtrip journey of over 24,000 miles.

That is a lot of flying.  But to me, the route they take is more interesting than the mileage itself.  Arctic Terns that nest in eastern Canada start their southward journey by first crossing the Atlantic Ocean to Europe, then fthey fly south along the western coasts of Europe and Africa to the Antarctic Circle.  In spring, they do not take the European route but return flying straight north through South and North America.