There have always been migrants.  People become migrants for safety, food and shelter. That’s all most animals want too.

It’s dangerous to leave your home and travel, people do not leave their homes without good cause.

It’s the same for animals.

Animal migration can take many forms.  Some birds, like this Andean Flicker which is a type of woodpecker, migrate up to the high sierras of the Andes in South America, the Puna, to nest during the summer. The harsh winters provide little food for the flickers and so they move lower, perhaps thousands of meters, where the environment is kinder.

Likewise for Andean Geese, they nest even higher, on the Altiplano at a dizzying 5000 meters. When the autumn winds start to blow they fly lower, to warmth and green pastures.

Humans are often unaware of the great bird migrations that seasonally criss-cross the skies. The same thing happens with human migration. Few see it and fewer experience it.

For birds and other animals one thing is assured: those migrants that do arrive at their new homes are able to feed and rest unmolested.

This is not the case for most human migrants.