Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) (Scolopacidae: Snipe, Godwit, Curlew, etc.)
The Bar tailed Godwit breeds in the high arctic of Eurasia and in Western Alaska. It migrates south to escape winter. In New Zealand and Australia, this species is a frequently encountered bird in mudflats and estuaries in summer months. These birds come from eastern Siberia and Alaska. Some birds found in New Zealand are known to have flown non-stop from Alaska - a journey of more than 11,000km! Birds filmed here were found on the north coast of New Zealand's North Island.