Frequent airline flyers know the fastest way to get to where you are going is flying non-stop. The more stops you make, the longer the entire journey takes. The same holds true for birds during migration.
Am. Golden Plovers take a non-stop approach to migration. After nesting on the tundra of Alaska and Canada, they assemble in Labrador, then travel non-stop over the open waters of the ocean to the coast of Brazil, one long flight, about 2400 miles, with no stops along the way. It is the fastest way to get to S. America but a dangerous flight especially if they encounter bad weather along the way.
The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is my favorite non-stop migrant. It may not fly as far as other migrants, but it only weights 1/8 of an ounce. The tiny hummingbird in your backyard flies down to the coast of Louisiana where it spends some time eating and building up energy for a longer flight. Because hummingbirds have the highest metabolism of all birds, they normally need to eat every 20-30 minutes. Still, after they have replenished their energy reserves, the hummingbirds take off on a non-stop flight from Louisiana to Central America 500 miles across the Gulf of Mexico. The trip takes a full day of continuous flying over open water.
The champion non-stop migrant is the Bar-tailed Godwit. Each fall it flies over 7,000 miles non-stop from Alaska to New Zeeland. This incredible journey takes several days and a lot of wing flapping
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