Onon, Amazing Cuckoo Covers 26,000 Kms From Zambia to Mongolia Under a Year, Surprises Scientists With Its Mammoth Migratory Journey
A cuckoo's migratory journey that has pleasantly surprised all scientists and officials at the Mongolia Cuckoo Project. One of their cuckoos named Onon has covered 26,000 kilometres in its round trip, across 27 border crossings involving 16 countries! Onon was tagged on 8 June 2019 and the bird returned today ie May 27 at the Khurkh Bird Banding Station.
While humans stay stuck within their homes in a lockdown due to Coronavirus, animals and birds seem to be having a good time in the open. But it is a cuckoo's migratory journey that has pleasantly surprised all scientists and officials at the Mongolia Cuckoo Project. One of their cuckoos named Onon has covered 26,000 kilometres in its round trip, across 27 border crossings involving 16 countries! Onon was tagged on 8 June 2019 and the bird returned today ie May 27 at the Khurkh Bird Banding Station. This amazing migratory journey of Onon has astonished even the scientists. Migratory Flamingos Flock to Navi Mumbai: Pictures and Videos of Flamingo Birds Swarming Mesmerise Netizens As the Turnout Increases Than Last Year!
Onon is one of five Cuckoos that were satellite tagged in Mongolia last summer by the Mongolia Cuckoo Project. Facilitated by Birding Beijing, it is a joint venture between local scientists and the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) that monitors long-distance migration. Of all the five birds that they have tagged, Onon is the only one who has created a mammoth record. Within two weeks that this cuckoo flew, it had covered 10,000 kms. From Kenya, it flew on April 29 this and in few days, it had crossed the Arabian Sea, entering India's Madhya Pradesh and then on May 4 it was in China.
Check Onon's Migratory Journey Map:
Watch Video of Onon Being Released Last Year:
In a report to BBC, Dr Chris Hewson from British Trust for Ornithology said Onon reveals so much more about long-distance migration of birds. He said, "I think the big takeaway is that the birds are able to travel so far and often so fast that they must be able to find suitable conditions for fattening and also know exactly where to go to get favourable wind conditions to help them, for instance, to cross the Indian Ocean." Onon's journey is also incredible because it survived the high-speed winds while flying. On its migration through India, it flew at an average speed of 60km/h. The facility was also tagging another bird named Bayan, which also covered a great distance in initial days but was exhausted later.
Fun Fact: The greatest record for bird migration is held by the Arctic tern as they breed in one hemisphere and feeds on another in a year! The Arctic tern breeds on the shores of the Arctic Ocean in the Northern Hemisphere summer, while it feeds over the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere half a year later. These birds are said to fly 40,000 km each year.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 27, 2020 05:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).