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Incredible , first - of - its - form footage give away a midget sup ’s battle for survival inside a mammoth sandstorm as it migrate across the Sahara Desert . The bird , which weighed less than an ounce ( 28 grams ) , was recorded while set about the most difficult part of its epic journeying northwards for the summertime .
Every twelvemonth , European barn swallows ( Hirundo rustica rustica ) migrate 6,000 international nautical mile ( 9,700 kilometers ) from northern Europe to southerly Africa , and then back again . The young clip , capture for National Geographic ’s " Incredible Animal Journeys , " shows a solitary barn swallow on the parlous leg across the desert .
The European barn swallow (Hirundo rustica rustica) was filmed on its northern migration over the Sahara Desert towards Europe.
" swallow are amongst nature ’s ' Top Guns ' — fast and athletic , capable to turn on a dime bag with a motion picture of their long tail feather — so finding a bird the size of your hand in a desert almost the size of the U.S. was always go to be a challenge , " Sarah Gibbs , executive manufacturer on the series , which premier Nov. 19 , differentiate Live Science in an email . " shoot that skirt in a sandstorm , on a long lens , buffeted by high winds , took it to the next level . "
The production team spotted the drink in Morocco on the northern boundary of the Sahara . This is the point where the deglutition are finishing their journeying across the desert , having spent days in searing - hot temperatures with no water . A scientist who studies the migration each yr , along with an avid birder and foresightful - lens camera operator assisted the team .
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" The storm was an unexpected bonus — but it made filming even tougher , " Gibbs said .
Barn swallow weigh between 0.6 and 0.7 oz. ( 17 to 20 Hans C. J. Gram ) and are around 6 inch ( 15 centimetre ) long . As the sirocco hit , winds picked up to around 40 miles per hour ( 64 km / h ) . The output team " focused in on a swallow really struggling , " she say . " A master of trajectory at the mercy of the element , tossed around like a boat at ocean . It was a nictation and you ’ll drop it moment as the chick search resort in a George Bush , wait for the storm to pass . "
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European b eat up migrate northward in the natural spring to twin and rearward chicks , then channelize in the south as temperatures start out to fall onwards of winter . The migration is parlous , withhigh mortality ratesrecorded each class . The Sahara is one of the deadliest item of the trip . " It take five day to cross and a swallow can only go a few days without crapulence , " Gibbs said .
After making it through the desert , the barn swallow was filmed get through a water source and wassail for the first time in days . From there , the snort still had to fly another 2,000 miles ( 3,200 km ) to reunify with its mate — before set out the cycle again .
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