Chapter 7, Problem 3CT

Summary Introduction

To determine:

Whether the flight (breast) muscles of bar-tailed godwits are light colored or dark colored.

Introduction:

The bar-tailed godwit is a type of shorebird that annually migrates from Alaska to New Zealand and returns back from where it started. These birds travel about 11, 500 kilometer by flying over the Pacific Ocean in about nine days. Their journey depends on the weather, wind speed, and direction of travel. One bird completed this entire journey uninterrupted, which is comparable to a human running a non-stop seven-day marathon at 70 kilometers per hour.