Like a moth to a flame: the story of the bogong’s spectacular migration
The bogong moth of Australia is an unassuming brown-grey coloured insect that has been blessed with extraordinary navigation skills. Each spring, billions of these moths embark on an epic migration, from their breeding grounds in eastern Australia to high-altitude caves, some located at 2,150m, in the cool Snowy Mountains in New South Wales. The journey covers over 1,000km, with the moths aiming to escape the blazing heat of the Australian summer.
Not only is their flight long and hazardous, with a high risk of being eaten by predators, but they travel in the dark of night without ever having previously flown the route and without guidance from their parents, which die before their offspring emerge as adults. The migration is so spectacular and vast that
