My husband, an expert birder, sent me an article the other day on a red knot — a kind of shorebird — that researchers tagged “B95” in Argentina back in 1995. At the time, the researchers thought the bird was two years old. Now age 19 and well past his expected life span of four years, B95 is still making his annual migrations between the Canadian Artic breeding grounds and his South American wintering grounds. The total mileage accrued to date on his little wings is more than 350,000 miles, the same distance from the earth to the moon and halfway back. For his remarkable achievement, he’s now called “Moonbird.”
With good reason, Moonbird is now a celebrity with a book on the way. Phillip Hoose is a writer and conservationist who has monitored the bird’s movements for three years. His book, entitled “Moonbird: On the Wind with the Great Survivor B95,” is due in July.
So think about it. This 4-ounce bird regularly survives predators, extreme weather (e.g., hurricanes), and two 5,000 mile journeys per year, while sadly, most of his species is in serious decline. But still, he “keeps on keeping on” as my father used to say and continues his life’s purpose. Inspiration for us all.
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