Project by Sewon Min and Changseong Li
Migratory birds fly toward the Arctic Circle from every longitude on Earth in summer to breed. They are born in the Arctic summer and return every year. In the Arctic, seasons differ sharply: a nine-month frozen winter is followed by a brief, intense summer of melting ice, continuous daylight, and a burst of life. Bird migration is tied to this regional summer, where birds actively reside.
The project maps Arctic summer while asking: how to map birds? Migration data comes from satellite tags, yet population counts still rely on human observation within defined transect lines. Mapping the Arctic is also complex: thawing permafrost and changing sea ice reshape the land, while the region spans North America and Russia, where oil reserves draw interest. Indigenous peoples shape the territory through their languages, including names for bird species. Birds will continue to arrive as the Arctic moves toward multiple futures.
