Arctic Tern Chick vs Polar Bear | Seasonal Wonderlands | BBC Earth
Summary
TLDRIn late July, the Arctic welcomes the end of Svalbard's summer as the Arctic terns complete the longest animal migration from Antarctica, a 30,000 km journey. Their chicks, hatched just weeks prior, must prepare for the return flight in 21 days. The rich waters of Svalbard provide ample energy, but the chicks' vulnerability on land attracts the Arctic's largest predator, the polar bear, now forced ashore by retreating ice. The terns' fierce defense against the starving bear, despite their size, highlights the resilience of these smallest birds in the face of the Arctic's harshest season.
Takeaways
- 🌏 The Arctic tern undertakes the longest migration of any animal, traveling over 30,000 kilometers from Antarctica to the Arctic.
- 🕊️ The tern's chicks hatch just in time for the short summer season in the Arctic, with only 21 days to grow and prepare for their return journey.
- 🕒 The tern parents must feed their chicks continuously, as the chicks need to gain enough strength to complete the 30,000 km flight back to Antarctica within three weeks.
- 🐟 The abundance of rich waters in the Arctic provides the necessary energy for the terns, which they transport from the ocean to their chicks.
- 🏠 The terns nest on the ground, making their chicks vulnerable to predators, especially when the parents are away fishing.
- 🐻 The retreating sea ice forces polar bears onto land, increasing the risk for ground-nesting birds like the terns.
- 🦅 The Arctic terns are highly aggressive and fearless, capable of driving away larger predators like polar bears, even though they are much smaller.
- 🩸 The terns' repeated attacks on the polar bear can draw blood from its sensitive nose, demonstrating their tenacity.
- 🌊 The retreating sea ice is a significant factor affecting the lives of both the terns and the polar bears, impacting their habitats and food sources.
- 🥶 Polar bears lose weight rapidly when on land, as they are forced to scavenge and struggle to find enough food, highlighting the challenges they face due to environmental changes.
- 🌌 The Arctic summer is a critical time for both the terns and polar bears, as it is a period of intense activity and survival strategies for these species.
Q & A
What time of year is it in the script?
-It is late July, the last of Sart's summer.
What is the longest migration of any animal, as mentioned in the script?
-The longest migration is over 30,000 kilometers, undertaken by the Arctic terns from Antarctica to the Arctic.
How long do Arctic tern chicks have to prepare for their first migration?
-Arctic tern chicks have only 21 days to prepare for their first 30,000 km migration.
What makes the waters of Spal Bir super rich?
-The waters of Spal Bir are super rich in energy, which is required by the Arctic terns for their migration.
Why do the adult Arctic terns have to fish nonstop?
-The adult Arctic terns have to fish nonstop to transport the energy from the ocean to their beaks for their chicks.
What makes the Arctic tern's nesting ground vulnerable?
-The Arctic terns nest on the ground, which makes them vulnerable due to the presence of predators.
Which predator is forced onto the land due to retreating sea ice?
-The polar bear, which is the Arctic's largest predator, is forced onto the land due to the retreating sea ice.
How much body weight does a polar bear lose for each day spent on land?
-A polar bear loses a kilo of body weight for every day it spends on land.
What does the polar bear turn into when it is on land and starving?
-The polar bear turns into a scavenger when it is on land and starving.
What happens when the Arctic tern chicks cry for help?
-When the Arctic tern chicks cry for help, their cries are heard and they engage in repeated attacks, drawing blood from the polar bear's sensitive nose.
How are the Arctic terns described in terms of their behavior towards predators?
-The Arctic terns are described as highly aggressive, fearless, and capable of driving away the Arctic's top predator.
Outlines
🐧 Arctic Migration and Survival
The script describes the arduous journey of the Arctic terns, who travel from Antarctica to the Arctic for the summer, a migration of over 30,000 kilometers. These birds have a short time to raise their chicks, who must be ready to undertake the same journey in just 21 days. The rich waters of the Arctic provide the necessary energy for this incredible feat, as the parents must transport food from the ocean to their young. The narrative also touches on the vulnerability of the chicks when left alone and the threat posed by the polar bears, which are forced onto land due to retreating sea ice and are driven to scavenge, highlighting the struggle of survival in the Arctic ecosystem.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Arctic Tern
💡Migration
💡Chicks
💡Spitzbergen
💡Sea Ice
💡Polar Bears
💡Scavenger
💡Aggressive
💡Vulnerable
💡Energy
💡Survival
Highlights
It is late July, marking the end of Svalbard's summer.
Visitors are just settling in as the Arctic terns have arrived from Antarctica.
Arctic terns undertake the longest migration of any animal, over 30,000 kilometers.
The terns will have to fly back to Antarctica in just three weeks.
Tern chicks have hatched and will need to fly 30,000 km in only 21 days.
Parents are transporting energy from the ocean to their chicks.
Svalbard's super-rich waters provide all the energy required for the terns.
Adult terns fish nonstop, sometimes leaving their chicks alone.
Terns nesting on the ground make their chicks vulnerable to predators.
Retreating sea ice has forced Svalbard's largest predator, the polar bear, onto land.
Polar bears are facing tough times, losing a kilo of body weight for every day spent on land.
The great ice bear turns into a scavenger and is starving.
A tern chick's cries for help are heard, attracting a polar bear.
Arctic terns, despite their small size, are highly aggressive and fearless.
Repeated attacks by terns draw blood from the polar bear's sensitive nose.
The Arctic's top predator is driven away by one of its smallest birds.
Transcripts
it's now Late
July and the last of sart's Summer
visitors are only just settling
in Arctic turns have come all the way
from the other end of the Earth from
Antarctica the longest migration of any
animal over 30,000
kilomet but in 3 weeks they'll have to
fly all the way back
again and their chicks have only just
hatched in only 21 days
time this ball of fluff will need to fly
30,000
km but it's well worth the parents
traveling all this
[Music]
way
spal bir's Super Rich Waters contain all
the energy
required all they have to do is
transport it from Ocean to
[Music]
beak
[Music]
as the adults fish
nonstop sometimes they have to leave a
chick on its
own and because turns nest on the
ground that can make it
vulnerable the retreating sea ice has
now forced fart's largest Predator onto
the
land and it's coming this
way now is the toughest time for polar
bears it loses a kilo of body weight for
every day it spends on the
land the great ice bear turns
scavenger and he's
[Music]
[Music]
starving not a good moment to break your
[Music]
cover but the chicks cries for help have
been
[Music]
heard turns may look dainty but they are
highly aggressive and totally
[Music]
Fearless repeated attacks draw blood
from the Bear's sensitive
nose the arctic's top
predator driven Away by one of its
smallest Birds
she
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