The great snipe is the world’s fastest long-distance migrant, reaching about 97 km/h on its journey to Africa.
Great snipes breed in northern Europe and western Siberia before traveling to sub-Saharan Africa. Unlike many soaring migrants, they make much of the journey with rapid, sustained flapping flight.
Researchers tracking the birds found that some great snipes can cover thousands of kilometres in only a few days. Their speed is especially remarkable because they generally fly at night and do not rely primarily on rising air currents.
The species is sometimes confused with the common snipe, but the great snipe is larger and has a different migration pattern. Its migration is also distinct from that of the peregrine falcon, whose spectacular speed is usually measured during a hunting dive rather than a sustained migration.