• Many migratory shorebirds travel a round trip each year of 25,000km (between Australia and their breeding grounds in the northern hemisphere).
• During a 20 year lifetime, a long distance migrating shorebird would travel over 400,000 km! Long-distance migration involves flights of 4,000 km and more - sometimes up to 8,000 km non-stop.
• Flocks of  shorebirds fly by day and night, over land and sea at altitudes of around 3,000 to 8,000 metres. They can adjust their altitude to avoid strong winds and take advantage of tail winds.
• Shorebirds fly at speeds of approximately 30 to 60 km/h.

• Shorebirds live a long time: large birds up to 30 years, medium 10-20 years, small 4-10 years.
• Mortality among adults away from the breeding grounds is low: 70-95% of adult birds usually return to breed.
• Some shorebirds fly non-stop for 3-4 days, equivalent to a human running continuous 4-minute miles for 60 hours.
• Shorebirds need to eat up to one-third their body weight every day to fuel their active lifestyle as well as build up fat reserves for their long migrations. In some, fat reserves can make up to 30% of their body weight.

Source: www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Charadiiformes.htm
Reference: Thurston, H. (1996) The World of Shorebirds, Sierra Club Books.

Eastern Curlew

• The Eastern Curlew is the world's largest shorebird.
• During migration Eastern Curlews travel a 20,000km round trip, with each leg of the journey up to 5,000-7,000km.
• Eastern Curlews normally weigh 800-900grams, however, they increase to about 1.3kg before migration.

Bar-tailed Godwit

• The world's longest known single migratory flight distance. Research suggests a direct non-stop flight of over 10,000km across the Pacific, from southwest Alaska to Australia & New Zealand.

Eastern Curlew and Whimbrel

Bar-tailed Godwit