Arctic Terns head for the Farnes.

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Right now thousands of these fascinating birds are beginning a very long migration from Antarctic waters to the Farne Islands off the Northumberland coast and beyond .

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The Arctic Tern has a remarkable migration pattern which involves flying from its Arctic breeding grounds during spring to the Antarctic and back again. It lands every one to three years to nest and once it has finished nesting it begins another long migration south.

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The average Arctic Tern will travel about 1.5 million miles during a lifespan of around 30 years. Arctic Terns mate for life, and usually return to the same colony to breed.