If you had to jump off of a 400-foot cliff or starve to death, which would you choose?
That’s exactly the decision that these goslings (young geese) have to make after just three short days of life. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were another option?
Residents of the Arctic islands of the North Atlantic, these barnacle geese nest high up on cliffs to stay a safe distance away from predators. This doesn’t bode well for their newly hatched babies, as all of their food sources are hundreds of feet away on the ground below.
Unfortunately, their parents are unable to bring food up to them and they’re still too young to fly. That means that if they want to eat, they’re going to have to take a leap of faith to the rocky terrain below.
At three days old, the goslings must undergo a rather dark and disturbing rite of passage. Launching themselves off a 400-foot high cliff, the goslings freefall until they smash onto the rocky outcrops below, rolling and tumbling the rest of the way down the cliff face.
Their parents wait anxiously at the bottom of the cliff as they take the plunge. Luckily, many survive the fall thanks to their light weight and plethora of downy feathers. Those that don’t make it, however, are easy pickings for the arctic foxes that patrol the area during the fledgling season.
Watch one fledgling take a leap in this incredible video narrated by David Attenborough:
Here’s a more recent video of this surprising behavior:
