They are known to breed north of the Himalayan mountain range, but spend their winters at sea level south of the Tibetan plateau. The University of Exeter scientists used satellite tracking to discover that they fly through valleys in the mountain range – avoiding massive peaks like Everest. The scientists used satellite data collected from 15 ruddy shelducks from two populations spending their winter south of the Tibetan plateau. The researchers suggested that ruddy shelducks wintering further east in India may fly even higher, given the higher terrain that lies north of India. The ruddy shelduck’s breeding range stretches from south-eastern Europe to western China, with some established populations in Africa.

Source: The Guardian September 06, 2017 04:52 UTC