Wild Bird Travel Advice

5 Lessons to Learn and Some Fun Facts

Photo by Author: A seagull enjoys the cherry blossoms in Ueno Park in Tokyo. This lucky shot was the result of aiming my camera at the cherry blossoms, pushing the shutter release halfway down when this seagull popped into the frame and then quickly pushing it the rest of the way down. Seagulls stay close to the action in case anyone drops anything yummy or even if they don’t drop it, just taking it out of their bag and getting distracted for a moment is enough.

Did you know that penguins migrate? Well, they do, some of them up to 17,000 km (around 10,000 miles) all on foot and by sea.

Tiny little hummingbirds migrate from the United States to Mexico and Central America on their tiny little wings.

Birds, quite possibly are the most well traveled animals on Earth, so the next time you are thinking about joining them in the sky and are getting your suitcase out, take heed, they have a lot to teach us about getting out there.

There is safety (and rest) in numbers

If you have ever looked up in the fall and seen a V of individual geese flying together, you have seen teamwork in action. They do this because the lead goose reduces the wind resistance for the rest of the flock. They take turns being the lead goose so they can cover more distance without getting exhausted. If one goose gets injured, a few of them will stay behind with them and join a different flock later on.

While I do love a good solo travel adventure, it is true that it is safer to travel in a flock. Several years ago, I broke my tibia just before moving across the world. The doctor said I couldn’t fly so soon after surgery but gave me no suggestions on how I should make it from Japan to…