Birds Of The Arctic (1974)

[Music] on the vast treeless plane of the Arctic tundra the harsh grip of winter is beginning to slagen [Music] far to the South flocks of snow geese are leaving their wintering grounds near the Gulf of Mexico to begin a long journey northward the snow geese will be joined by other birds migrating from the south Guided by some mysterious Instinct along a precise course to the Arctic [Music] [Applause] [Music] first to arrive in the Arctic is the willow Tagan ending its short migration from Southern Canada the male Tan's winter plumage has already begun to change to the darker color that will protect it in summer several weeks will pass before the snow melts and other birds join the tarmigan by the end of May several more species of birds have arrived with the melting of the snow a vast area has become available for nesting sites and this may be one factor that draws the birds from their more crowded wintering grounds the parasitic jger has spent the winter at Sea off the coast of South America the Sand Hill crane has come from wintering grounds as far south as Mexico and the Arctic turn has ended its migration of 10,000 M from the Southern Ocean near Antarctica the longest distance covered by any migrating bird the turns will nest on the shores of the Arctic Ocean other birds such as the Arctic loon prefer the large Inland Lakes loons are are good swimmers but are very awkward on land so they build their nests as close to the water as possible the feres have migrated from the ocean off the northern coasts of South America the red fope is one of three species with different coloration to find the water insects that make up part of their diet fer ropes often stir up the Water by spinning this is a northern fope another shorebird the Ruddy Turnstone finds insects by turning over stones and other objects a flock of snow geese has arrived and each pair is selecting a nesting site the nests will be closed together forming a kind of loose Colony but each nesting area is considered private territory to be defended from all Intruders as the nesting season approaches the the plumage of the willow tarmigan continues to change the male now has about half of his darker summer feathers the female has changed more quickly by nesting time when the eggs are laid she is well camouflaged in her summer plumage if the nest of an Arctic bird is left unguarded it may be raided by parasitic Jaggers or other Predators who feed on the eggs in guarding their own nests from an approaching Predator Jagger distract the Enemy by pretending to have a broken wing in June the plant life of the tundra burst suddenly into bloom under a sun that never sets the vegetation is a food supply for grazing birds like the snow goose [Laughter] [Music] it's been a little more than 3 weeks since the eggs were laid soon the young snow geese will be ready to emerge other young birds have also hatched the lapan long spur is one of the few song birds that nest in the Arctic Young Water birds like this whistling Swan don't need to be fed by their parents a few hours after hatching they're able to move about on their own [Laughter] [Music] [Applause] like the swans young snow geese are able to swim and to feed [Music] themselves adult snow geese mate for life and the family is a close-knit unit that will remain together long after the young have learned to fly the Summer sun is warm but even now the Arctic winds are chilling and the young geese seek shelter and warmth from the bodies of their parents there are other families of geese in the tundra these are Blues [Music] except for their color blue geese are identical to snow geese in fact a blue goose will often mate with a snow goose at one time they were classified as separate species but now there's little doubt that they represent only a color variation within the same species [Music] [Music] late in the summer the adult snow Gees lose their wing feathers all at once for about 3 weeks while new feathers are growing in they will not be able to fly this flightless period is useful to the scientists who study migrating birds since the geese can't fly they are easily surrounded and driven into pens [Music] [Laughter] then small metal bands can be placed on the birds later when a banded bird is found in some other part of the world scientists will know where it has been and how far it has traveled by late August or early September the Young geese have learned to fly and their parents have grown new Wing feathers the long Southward flight begins [Music] during the long polar winter the geese and the other birds we've seen will live in many different parts of the world but when spring returns they will gather once more on the breeding grounds of the Arctic [Music] oh