'Extreme Nomad' Bird Puts Your Frequent Flier Miles to Shame

Think you've racked up an impressive number of frequent flier miles? Are you the kind of person to travel at a moment's notice? Sorry, but you've got nothing on the banded stilt. A new study has observed how this remarkable desert-dwelling bird will travel well over a thousand miles at the drop of a hat just to chow down on some incredibly unpredictable prey.

The study, recently published in the journal Biology Letters, details how Australia's banded stilt (Cladorhynchus leucocephalus) has one of the most unpredictable-yet-lengthy migrations among waterbirds.

That's because these unusual waterbirds, which traditionally make thier home along coastal wetlands, exploits an incredibly rich yet-short-lived resource whenever they can.

According to study author Reece Pedler of Deakin University in Victoria, Australia, experts had long noticed that on seemingly random occasions, great flocks of the banded still would disappear from their natural habitats for short periods of time, only to return well-fed and healthy.

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