Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How do short-tailed shearwaters migrate between Australia and the North Pacific?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Migration
A herd of common wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) migrating across a dusty savanna in Africa. The animal is a keystone species (i.e., a species with a disproportionately large effect on its biological community) in plains and acacia savanna ecosystems from southeastern Africa to central Kenya.
Short-tailed shearwaters (Puffinus tenuirostris), also known as muttonbirds, undertake an extensive migratory journey across the Pacific Ocean. They nest in large colonies along the coasts of southern Australia and in Tasmania.12
Their migration follows a distinct pattern:
- Northward Migration: After the breeding season, they migrate across the western Pacific toward Japan. They spend the months of June through August in the North Pacific and the Arctic Ocean.1
- Return Migration: During their return journey, they travel east and southeast along the Pacific coast of North America before flying diagonally across the Pacific to return to Australia.1
This species spends the remainder of the year circumnavigating the Pacific, covering vast distances as part of their annual cycle.12