Great Land Migrations

I LOVE National Geographic!! They have so many beautiful video clips of great animal migrations that I could just sit down with a bowl of popcorn and watch them all day.

Here are some highlights of my favorite land animals that migrate:

In Africa, wildebeests (shown in the image above) are perhaps the most well-known migratory mammal. Check out this video clip from National Geographic which talks about their migration.

The largest land mammal that migrates is the elephant (image below from National Geographic). In Mali they migrate over 300 miles to find food and water along long corridors that have been shrinking as a result of climate change and habitat destruction by livestock. You can read more about these amazing animals and watch a video clip of their migration here.

With all of those stripes running by, the most dizzying migratory mammal are arguably zebras (image below from National Geographic)! You can actually book a trip to watch this migration in person through National Geographic Expeditions. However, if your budget is tight like mine, then you could just watch this video clip on National Geographic.

The 150-mile round trip migration of pronghorn antelope in Wyoming is perhaps the longest remaining migration route in the continental United States. Thanks to The US Forest Service, this migratory route, now called the "Path of the Pronghorn" has been protected since 2008. You can read the story here.

Migratory Routes and Animals in Danger
The migration of various ungulates are declining due to extinction of the animals, or to the building of homes, roads, and fences that block their migration routes. Moreover, existing land migrations are shrinking. You can listen to the full interview of Dr. Grant Harris from the US Fish and Wildlife Service discussing this issue with Christopher Joyce.