- 2 days ago
Some of the smallest animals make the largest journeys. Soar alongside them as they fly halfway around the world to find the best place to raise a family. A variety of animal species make epic journeys across the planet for resources. Their unique migration stories provide intriguing insights into the animal kingdom.
鸟类中的“耐力之王”
• 北极燕鸥 (Arctic Tern)：世界上迁徙距离最远的动物。它们每年在北极和南极之间往返，一生的飞行总里程甚至可以达到 240万公里，相当于在地球和月球之间往返了3次。
• 斑尾塍鹬 (Bar-tailed Godwit)：不着陆连续飞行冠军。一只代号为“4BBRW”的斑尾塍鹬曾创下纪录，连续飞行 11天不吃不喝不睡觉，跨越太平洋，从阿拉斯加直达新西兰，行程超过 12,000公里。
• 高山雨燕 (Alpine Swift)：空中生活大师。它们可以连续 6个月不落到地面。在空中，它们完成了进食、饮水、交配甚至睡觉（通过半脑慢波睡眠，即轮流让一半大脑休息）的所有生命活动。
昆虫界的“长跑冠军”
• 黑脉金斑蝶（帝王蝶, Monarch Butterfly）：跨越世代的史诗迁徙。每年数以百万计的帝王蝶会从加拿大和美国飞往墨西哥越冬，行程达 4,800公里。最神奇的是，由于单只蝴蝶的寿命很短，这场旅程往往需要 4到5代蝴蝶 接力才能完成，但后代总能准确找到祖先去过的同一片树林。
• 薄翅蜻蜓 (Globe Skimmer)：最远迁徙的昆虫。它们利用季风跨越印度洋，在印度和非洲之间往返迁徙，总里程超过 14,000公里。
鸟类中的“耐力之王”
• 北极燕鸥 (Arctic Tern)：世界上迁徙距离最远的动物。它们每年在北极和南极之间往返，一生的飞行总里程甚至可以达到 240万公里，相当于在地球和月球之间往返了3次。
• 斑尾塍鹬 (Bar-tailed Godwit)：不着陆连续飞行冠军。一只代号为“4BBRW”的斑尾塍鹬曾创下纪录，连续飞行 11天不吃不喝不睡觉，跨越太平洋，从阿拉斯加直达新西兰，行程超过 12,000公里。
• 高山雨燕 (Alpine Swift)：空中生活大师。它们可以连续 6个月不落到地面。在空中，它们完成了进食、饮水、交配甚至睡觉（通过半脑慢波睡眠，即轮流让一半大脑休息）的所有生命活动。
昆虫界的“长跑冠军”
• 黑脉金斑蝶（帝王蝶, Monarch Butterfly）：跨越世代的史诗迁徙。每年数以百万计的帝王蝶会从加拿大和美国飞往墨西哥越冬，行程达 4,800公里。最神奇的是，由于单只蝴蝶的寿命很短，这场旅程往往需要 4到5代蝴蝶 接力才能完成，但后代总能准确找到祖先去过的同一片树林。
• 薄翅蜻蜓 (Globe Skimmer)：最远迁徙的昆虫。它们利用季风跨越印度洋，在印度和非洲之间往返迁徙，总里程超过 14,000公里。
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:08To start a family, some of the smallest animals make the biggest journeys.
00:19And when you're barely the size of a human hand, the best way to travel long distance is to fly.
00:31This barn swallow spends her winter in South Africa, where there's lots for her to eat.
00:41But it's not her home.
00:53Every spring, she's got to fly 6,000 miles back to England.
01:01To reunite with her lifelong partner and raise their chicks.
01:09It's a long-distance love story.
01:14But there are no guarantees.
01:18Less than half of all swallows survive the round trip.
01:29In South Africa, it's time to get going.
01:44Summer is coming in England.
01:47And with it, longer days and the bugs she'll need to feed her growing family.
01:55Her strategy?
01:57Fly fast.
02:01And travel light.
02:06For that, she needs pristine flight feathers.
02:13So, she starts with a spring clean.
02:27On this trip, nothing comes easy.
02:37Probably the fastest freshwater fish on the planet.
02:44Over two feet of muscle.
02:47African tiger fish.
02:53Are explosive predators.
03:01Less experienced birds get blindsided.
03:09If this endurance athlete's feathers aren't in peak condition, she'll never go the distance.
03:23So, she's got to take the risk.
03:36With a flick of her tail feathers, she turns on a dime.
03:47She's got the skills to take a bath with a hungry tiger fish.
03:59And win.
04:08The clock is ticking.
04:12She only has six short weeks to make it.
04:19And she's not the only one heading north.
04:26Across the globe.
04:29Billions of frequent flyers take to the skies.
04:35Setting off in search of summer.
04:41Making incredible journeys.
04:46Chasing the sun.
04:51All racing to the best place to start their families.
05:17In central Mexico.
05:22Another great airborne marathon is about to begin.
05:32Like the swallow.
05:34This monarch butterfly flew south to escape the harsh northern winter.
05:44This remote forest is perfect for hibernation.
05:55The spring sunlight.
05:57The spring sunlight.
05:58Wakes her.
06:00From five months of sleep.
06:09But there's no food here.
06:11To raise her family.
06:24To raise her family.
06:28To raise her family.
06:38She's one of tens of millions.
06:43All still finding their wings.
07:00A quick drink.
07:02Fully reboots her system.
07:08Releasing vital energy reserves.
07:15There's just one more thing she needs to do before she leaves.
07:21Find a mate.
07:24There's no shortage of males.
07:36There's no shortage of males.
07:38Job done.
07:41It's the only part he'll play.
07:44In her story.
07:52With less than a month to live.
07:55The distance ahead is impossible for her alone.
08:03So it's a mission.
08:05She'll pass down to her daughters.
08:07And granddaughters.
08:09In an epic.
08:11Multi-generational.
08:12Relay race.
08:18A 2,000 mile flight north.
08:22To the American prairies.
08:25The perfect place.
08:26For her great-grandchildren.
08:29To grow up.
08:39The power of flight.
08:42Is the only way to cross an entire continent at pace.
08:49The swallows covered 2,000 miles.
08:53In just 10 days.
09:00And she's entering the African savannah.
09:08There's no margin for error.
09:15To stay light.
09:16And nimble.
09:19She carries almost nothing.
09:21In reserve.
09:22Only three of them.
09:28So she constantly needs to refuel.
09:35This place...
09:36Is crawling with tasty bugs.
09:41But they're tucked away in the long grass.
09:45just out of reach.
09:51So she enlists the help
09:54of giants.
10:06As these heavyweight travelers
10:08stir up the grass.
10:15She snatches bug.
10:21After bug.
10:29Up to ten
10:30in a minute.
10:34The perfect
10:36in-flight meal.
10:39Now everyone's got the same idea.
10:57There's no time to waste.
11:02Stretching out ahead of her,
11:044,000 miles still to go.
11:06Across desert,
11:08ocean,
11:09before she gets back to England
11:11to her mate
11:11and starts her family.
11:22In the race to summer,
11:24you've got to keep your foot on the gas.
11:31The monarch is 500 miles
11:34into her epic quest.
11:38Entering the scorched deserts
11:40of the southern U.S.
11:44Here,
11:45the mercury can hit 95 degrees.
11:49But the sun
11:50is what keeps
11:52this cold-blooded bug
11:53on the move.
11:55Warming her muscles
11:56so she can fly.
12:02Temperatures plummet
12:03at nightfall.
12:07So for now,
12:09she's grounded.
12:27She's not the only
12:28frequent flyer
12:30waiting on the desert sun.
12:37At this time of year,
12:39Costa's hummingbirds
12:40are also looking
12:41for the best place
12:42to start their family.
12:50This male
12:51weighs less than
12:52a tenth of an ounce.
12:58But he's traveled
12:59over 100 miles.
13:05Lured by irresistible
13:06blooms of flowers.
13:21Now,
13:22he needs the power
13:23of the sun
13:24to help him win a mate.
13:29Female Costa's hummingbirds
13:31are notoriously picky.
13:37They want to be wowed.
13:44But the canyon's
13:45still in shade.
13:49He's got
13:50to be patient.
13:56But then...
14:10it's finally
14:11his time to shine.
14:17He flexes those flashy feathers
14:19around his throat.
14:22Known as a gorgeous.
14:30To catch the light
14:32just right.
14:36Not quite the reaction
14:38he was hoping for.
14:47One last dance
14:48to win her over.
14:56His glowing performance
14:58pays off.
15:05The beginning
15:06of their own journey together.
15:22On the desert's edge,
15:24the morning sun
15:25is still powering up
15:26the monarch.
15:30Her wings work
15:31like solar panels
15:33raising her body
15:34temperature
15:35to 60 degrees.
15:39Ready for takeoff.
15:48She's also using the sun
15:50like a GPS
15:51to keep her heading north.
15:58She only has a few weeks left
16:00to complete her leg
16:01of the relay.
16:18As a tiny traveler,
16:23there are some places
16:24you just can't afford
16:25to stop.
16:30Racing to reunite
16:31with her mate,
16:33the swallows
16:34on the toughest part
16:35of her trip.
16:38The Sahara Desert.
16:44Searing hot.
16:46Nothing to drink.
16:50Where many others
16:52have fallen.
16:57Desperately thirsty.
17:00She needs to escape
17:01these dunes.
17:17But the desert's
17:18not finished
17:18with her yet.
17:28Sandstorms come
17:28out of nowhere.
17:44playing less than an ounce.
17:49A battle against
17:5140 mile an hour winds
17:53is a fight
17:54she cannot win.
18:13She's pushed everything
18:15right to the wire.
18:21She can only survive
18:22a few days
18:23without drinking.
18:30This could be
18:31her last chance.
18:36She needs water soon
18:38or she'll die.
18:48Finally.
18:50The one thing
18:51that will save her life.
18:58an oasis.
18:59An oasis.
19:10Many won't have
19:11even made it this far.
19:34She's flown the length
19:35of Africa.
19:41But she still has
19:42almost 2,000 miles
19:43to go.
19:50At this time of year
19:52she's just one
19:53of billions of birds
19:55following flight paths.
20:01The world's busiest flyway
20:03runs Africa
20:04to Europe.
20:08And everyone's
20:09rushing home
20:10to start their families.
20:16In Israel
20:17huge flocks of birds
20:20like pelicans
20:21and storks
20:23take the long way around.
20:29harnessing thermals
20:30the powerful updrafts
20:32of warm air
20:33that form over land
20:38to soar effortlessly.
20:48The super-powered swallow
20:49doesn't need help
20:50from thermals.
20:53She can take the shortcut.
20:56Racing across the Mediterranean Sea
20:59into Europe.
21:08In Texas
21:09the monarch
21:10is close to exhaustion.
21:14With her last reserves
21:17she's seeking out
21:18the perfect spot
21:18to lay her eggs.
21:23Using her amazing
21:24sense of smell
21:26she's on the hunt
21:27for milkweed
21:27the only food
21:29her babies will eat.
21:34It's a plant
21:35which was once abundant.
21:39But now
21:40over three-quarters
21:41of the state
21:42is farmland
21:46choked by pesticides
21:47and wheat killers.
21:51For a butterfly
21:52it's effectively
21:53a desert.
22:00It's not just farms
22:02that have replaced
22:02wild landscapes.
22:07Reaching the suburbs
22:09of Austin
22:10she's running on empty.
22:14But incredibly
22:16in flight
22:17from over 400 feet away
22:19she's found
22:21the needle
22:21in the haystack.
22:27This backyard
22:28has exactly
22:30what she needs
22:31for her eggs.
22:40she lays hundreds
22:42on milkweed
22:43specially planted
22:44to help
22:45migrating monarchs.
22:54But she'll never
22:55meet her babies
22:59before they even hatch.
23:03she takes
23:04her last breath.
23:08Her mission
23:09is complete.
23:15This is the true miracle
23:18of the monarch migration.
23:22It's not a marathon.
23:26It's a relay race.
23:34After about four days
23:39her caterpillars hatch
23:41in the perfect nursery
23:43surrounded by food.
23:47And that's all
23:48this little bug
23:49has on her mind.
23:54Milkweed is poisonous.
23:58Yet she's not only immune
24:01she's using it
24:02for her own defense.
24:05Storing the deadly chemicals
24:06in her body.
24:08She makes herself
24:09toxic.
24:15Wearing bright colors
24:16as a warning signal.
24:23in just two weeks
24:25she'll eat
24:27and grow
24:30and eat
24:31and grow
24:35until she's
24:37three thousand
24:38times bigger.
24:42Spinning sticky silk
24:43to hang from.
24:47She forms
24:48a chrysalis.
25:02Over the next
25:03ten days
25:04she breaks
25:05herself down
25:05into a kind
25:06of genetic soup
25:12before putting
25:14herself back
25:15together
25:23and emerging
25:26as a butterfly.
25:35she's her mother's
25:36daughter
25:40born with the
25:41same mission
25:46and the same
25:48built-in GPS.
25:56she sets off
25:58to fly
25:59as far north
26:00as she can
26:01within her own
26:02short lifespan.
26:06So her daughters
26:07stand a chance
26:09of making it
26:09to the prairies.
26:19The swallow
26:20is also
26:20racing the clock
26:24making up
26:25for lost time
26:30powering on
26:31through Europe
26:31using every
26:33navigational trick
26:34in her book
26:37following rivers
26:38northwards
26:41piloting around
26:41buildings
26:42she recognizes
26:43from trips
26:44before.
26:50Still a thousand
26:51miles to go
26:52until home
26:53where her mate
26:55should be waiting
26:58so she keeps
26:59moving.
27:04But not
27:05everyone
27:05has quite
27:07so far to go.
27:11here in
27:13central Europe
27:13others are
27:15already settling
27:16in for summer.
27:29this guy,
27:31a European bee-eater,
27:33was born in these
27:34meadows last year.
27:42he spent winter
27:43in Africa
27:44alongside the swallows.
27:53now he's back
27:54and looking for love.
28:15watching older males duke it out.
28:19he's thinking twice
28:21about getting involved.
28:32perhaps there's an easier way?
28:34perhaps there's an easier way?
28:39an offering of an insect
28:41seems to work for others.
28:48a courtship technique
28:50known as
28:51nuptial gifting.
29:07he needs to get in on the action.
29:09he needs to get in on the action.
29:37here's an idea, just like the swallow.
29:43he caught bugs around the elephants in Africa.
29:46he caught bugs around the elephants in Africa.
30:25now, surrounded by plenty of tasty food to feed their chicks, young love can bloom.
30:5410 weeks after the monarch set out from Mexico, it's her daughter, who's now made it to Oklahoma.
31:04roadsides are a surprising slice of paradise.
31:14the perfect place to refuel.
31:23or so it might seem.
31:44or so it might seem.
31:53but there's an even greater danger coming down the track.
32:05the metal monster is headed straight for her.
32:15millions of monarchs end up as roadkill.
32:20one of the biggest causes of death.
32:33the metal monster is headed out.
32:37the metal monster is headed straight for her.
32:41the metal monster is headed out to the top.
32:53Too close for comfort.
33:01Time to move on.
33:09The summer just around the corner.
33:13For the swallow, the end is already in sight.
33:23The southwest coast of England.
33:28Not far now.
33:39Everyone's racing to get home.
33:52But they're under surveillance.
33:59By a master hunter.
34:06This bird of prey, a hobby, has also flown north from Africa to take advantage of new arrivals.
34:39Reaching up to 40 miles an hour in pursuit.
34:45He's one of the few birds of prey fast enough to catch the acrobatic swallow in flight.
35:04He's locked on target.
35:24But she's not going to be someone's dinner.
35:27Not today.
35:29One last push.
35:35Over 6,000 miles after leaving South Africa.
35:40Her laser-like focus can still pinpoint exactly what she's looking for.
35:49This tiny farmyard, where she and her partner nested last year.
36:01Finally, home sweet home.
36:07She crossed continents to be here.
36:12Made up for lost time.
36:19But her mate is nowhere to be seen.
36:29He made the same journey solo and should have been back by now.
36:39The average lifespan of a swallow is just three years.
36:48This could be her last chance to raise a family.
36:55All she can do now is wait.
36:59And hope.
37:12While the swallow has made her journey in one go,
37:19it's taken the monarch three generations to reach the Promised Land.
37:28The glorious prairies of the American Midwest.
37:35One of the only places with enough food to fuel the next generation.
37:44Once, these rich landscapes blanketed almost a third of North America.
37:53The isolated fragments that remain still teem with life.
38:06All like the monarch.
38:10Reaping the rewards of summer.
38:19She's achieved the impossible.
38:24Finishing what her grandmother started six months ago.
38:39But the end of this journey is really just the beginning of an even more incredible story.
38:50The caterpillars that hatch here are what's known as the super generation.
39:01They build up huge reserves of energy.
39:08Putting enough gas in the tank.
39:13To fly the entire 2,000 miles back to Mexico.
39:19In one straight shot.
39:31Without these fertile grasslands.
39:36This miraculous migration could be lost forever.
39:56Some are still waiting for their happily ever after.
40:06The swallows patiently holding out for her partner to return.
40:19Every year there's a risk that one of them won't make it home alive.
40:35Another male tries his luck.
40:41But she's not giving up on her mate.
40:43Just yet.
40:59Finally.
41:05Her loyalty pays off.
41:17Together again.
41:19There's no time to waste.
41:26Only one thing left to do.
41:33Renovate last year's nest.
41:38To be ready for their chicks.
41:47With a cozy feather bed.
42:14She's not come all this way.
42:16To be beaten by a feather.
42:34Her incredible journey is complete.
42:43But all migrations are a never-ending story.
42:51In just a few months, she'll fly back south for winter.
42:58Like so many other frequent fliers.
43:02Crossing continents year after year.
43:07To give her family a flying start.
43:10To give her family a flying start.
43:11For their own adventures.
43:12Magi or feathers?
43:15À Largo, New Yorker, New Orlando
43:16New Yorkerش