Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 1-2 | Page 330

Arctic Terns' Journey
Kennedy School, Lai, Charisse - 8
A
Sterna Paradisaea , known as an Arctic tern, is a sea bird, which means it lives close to the sea. It
might be clumsy on land, but that hides a wonderful secret: Arctic terns fly the longest distance
migration in the world, from Greenland’s coast to Antarctica's coast, the northernmost part of the
Earth to its opposite end. These amazing migrators travel 71,000km round trip in a year, which is equivalent
to 3 return journeys to the moon in a lifetime!
The journey begins at Greenland, arctic terns’ breeding grounds where they breed in July. In late August,
they fly south, and then head west to Caribbean Sea. The colonies sometimes scatter around the Equator to
find places that has fish to build up energy but come back together before they get to their destination,
Weddell Sea in Antarctica. During this journey, there are many challenges that arctic terns have to face
before arriving their paradise where they will spend five to six months (November to April) either resting or
fishing.
In order to reach the far destination in just three months of time, small arctic terns, weighing 100-200
grams, fly up to 1000 km each day. They do not stop frequently for food, and have an ability to sleep and eat
while gliding at the same time. Despite the long, tiring flight, there is a reward- they get to see more
sunlight than any other animals in the world.
In fact, arctic terns do not get much sleep, since they spend most of the hours including night time flying.
Flying in a pitch-dark environment is not such a hard task for them. Arctic terns are very clever; they can
navigate its way all the way to Antarctica by the sun and by the Earth’s magnetic field (Earth’s North and
South magnetic poles) day and night.
In this long journey, arctic terns will encounter extreme temperatures which range from −28°C at freezing
Antarctica’s coast to 33°C around the humid tropical zone. Harsh weather is also a problem. Severe storms
like the hurricanes in Caribbean Sea might interfere the flight but the fat that the arctic terns built up helps
them keep their energy and fly through. Bitter cold winds could slow down the journey but their feathers
help them stay warm.
Arctic terns are pretty good at dealing with predators (e.g. seagulls, jaeger, bicols, and minks, etc.) while they
are protecting their nests or when they are flying. They nose-dive at predators’ heads when defending their
nests and young ones and peck their predators with their sharp beaks.
To build enough energy, they eat a lot of food: chiefly crustaceans, mollusks, herring and cod. In addition,
they eat berries, shrimp, crabs, and other small fish for the long journey. However, climate change makes the
world warmer and also make fish hard to find. It is because when the temperature in the ocean gets warmer,
the fish like herring dives deeper to a colder place. Therefore, there are fewer places to find fish.
Unfortunately, arctic terns don’t dive like other sea birds. They hover in mid-air, and then pick the fish
from the surface. When the food source is scarce, fledglings (young arctic terns) that only eat herring are
forced to eat butterfish that they cannot swallow. Hunger also weakens arctic terns when defending
themselves from predators. It makes the difficult journey even more dangerous.
“Go West.
Paradise is there.
You’ll have all that you can eat
Of milk and honey over there.”
Natalie Merchant
Arctic terns' journey is full of challenges and dangers, and so do ours. Only the risk takers who are spirited,
determined and perseverant would have the chances to reach the paradise where milk and honey flow and
enjoy the picturesque scenery along the journey.