For hundreds of years we've marvelled at bird migration, observing the seasons change around us as birds arrive and depart. Today we know where they go when they leave our shores, but that wasn't always the case. Over the years, humans have had some pretty strange ideas about bird migration. Here are our top eight wild migration myths... in order of weirdness.
8. Windbreakers
Geese, such as these brent geese, travel vast distances by using the updraft from the bird in front. They rotate position throughout their trip. Photo: Paul Chesterfield (rspb-images.com)
Not too outlandish, but certainly incorrect, ancient Roman writer Cicero thought the leading bird in a flock flying in a V formation kept the wind off its followers. He also said that when a different bird took over at the lead, the previous leader rested its head on the back of the bird in front. Today we know that actually birds fly in V formations to gain uplift and save energy. Read more about why birds fly in formation.
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7. Soothsayers
Waxwings descend on the UK only once every few years, driven by food scarcity elsewhere. Photo: Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)
Natural occurrences have been taken as signs and omens across history, and it used to be that unexpected, unexplained arrivals were something to fear. Thousands of waxwings descending from the skies, a phenomenon that only happens once every few years, must have seemed odd. They were seen by many as bad omens, foretelling terrible things to come. One particular waxwing invasion happened in the winter of 1913–14, and was seen afterwards as a harbinger of World War I.
6. Transformers
We now know that redstarts travel from the UK, across the Mediterranean and over-winter in Africa. Photo: Ben Andrew (rspb-images.com)
Famous Greek philosopher Aristotle suggested that certain birds changed into other species for the winter, with redstarts transforming into robins! As one species leaves as another arrives, so it's easy to see how this mistake was made.
5. Out of this world
Arctic terns' migrations are so long, in terms of distance they could make it to the moon and back in a lifetime. Photos: Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)
In the 1700s there was a theory that birds flew to the moon in winter. Scientist Charles Morton estimated that birds would take 60 days to fly to the moon. Morton may have been wrong about birds in space, but he wasn't wrong about the vast distances some birds fly. Arctic terns hold the record for the longest migration. The longest lived Arctic tern was recorded at 31 years old, which means that (given their immense migrations) it may have flown around 1.85 million miles in its lifetime. That's actually the equivalent of flying to the moon and back almost four times - so perhaps the myth wasn't so far-fetched after all!
4. Hitchhikers
Unlikely as it seems, tiny goldcrests can make a long migration across the North Sea, even though they weigh only 7g – the same as a 2p coin. Photo: John Bridges (rspb-images.com)
Tiny birds making long migrations has long baffled humans. Large numbers of Scandinavian goldcrests arrive in the UK in autumn, usually around the same time that woodcocks are flying in the same direction. Goldcrests earned the nickname “woodcock pilots” as it was believed that they hitched a ride on woodcocks' backs. People thought that the goldcrest was too small to make the perilous North Sea crossing on its own. Of course today we know that they do – leaving at night and relying on the fat reserves they've built up in preparation. You can read more about goldcrest migration on page 16 of the Winter 2017 issue of Nature's Home.
3. Deep divers
Swallows make an epic migration from the UK all the way to Africa. Photo: Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)
Getting stranger now... for centuries many people held a theory that summer birds, such as swallows, sand martins and house martins, hibernated at the bottom of ponds. It was thought that these species buried themselves in wet mud and slept out the winter underwater. This would have made perfect sense to those who had seen the birds flying around rivers and lakes, snatching insects or roosting in reedbeds in autumn.
2. Odd hatchers
Barnacle geese travel to the UK from either Greenland or Svalbard. Photo: Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)
Even stranger again was the theory that barnacle geese appeared from goose barnacles. Writing in the 12th century, royal clerk Gerald of Wales gave his readers an intriguing description of barnacle geese, which he says do not lay eggs but emerge from “gummy excrescences” on floating timber. This belief continued for hundreds of years. Now we know that the barnacle geese we see here in winter have hatched from eggs just like any other goose! They fly here from the far north, either Greenland or Svalbard.
1. Warrior Cranes
In Greek mythology, it was said the pygmies were at constant war with cranes. Image: Nuremeurg Chronicle 1493
By far the weirdest myth we've heard, the ancient Greeks and Romans were at it again with their theory about cranes. They believed that cranes flew to the end of the world to do battle with armies of goat-riding men. At least they were right about the migration bit – as common cranes migrate to Spain and Africa.
Have you heard any outlandish migration myths? Let us know in the comments below. You can read more about migration in our Migration Special Issue – Winter 2018 of Nature's Home magazine.
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