Rhetorical Strategies in "Flight of the Kuaka"

In his essay "Flight of the Kuaka," Don Stap uses a variety of rhetorical strategies to detail the extraordinary story of the longest migratory flight ever documented.  One such strategy used is the author's overabundance of descriptive language; in the opening paragraphs of this essay, one is taken to the muddiness of a shallow pond in New Zealand, where researchers are gathering Bar-tailed Godwits to tag for a study on their flight paths and migratory practices.  Stap describes the experience of walking across a bog "...slick as lard...", hoping not to end up like the other two poor souls who slipped and fell into the mixture of mud and manure only moments earlier.  When one of the researchers realizes that they have grabbed one too many test subjects, he pushes the poor animal into Stap's arms, "A warm bundle with long, kicking legs...[its] heart beating like a trapped moth against my chest."  When it comes time to release the godwits, Stap again uses powerful imagery to let the reader see the event through his eyes: "With the birds out of sight, I look up, once again drawn to the starry sky...I'm delighted to recognize a constellation...the Southern Cross...In a few weeks, the godwits will rise into the air and leave behind Crux Australis for the cold northern skies of Ursa Major...the young birds, guided by some deep baueri knowledge of the earth and wind and stars, will set off on a 7,000-mile journey to a place they’ve never seen—the land of the long white cloud."  Stap uses well-known constellations as landmarks, the Southern Cross as a symbol of the journey's beginning, and Ursa Major as the cold, hostile destination; in addition to providing a means for the reader to conceptualize the vastness of the journey that these creatures have to endure to ensure their survival.

Another strategy that Stap utilizes is the use of a process analysis, which he then contrasts with the landmark flight of E7.  Many species similar to E7's tend to hug the shoreline as they fly to warmer climes in winter, so that they may land, rest, and, most importantly, refuel on shellfish.  E7, on the other hand took a drastic turn and flew over open ocean, for eight days straight without any possible rest, ending up 7,250 miles away from her departure point.  The author notes that his colleague in charge of the study, as well as several other experts, were stunned, at a loss for how such a feat could be possible by such a creature; this helps emphasize to the reader just how incredible it is that E7 made this journey under such circumstance.  After this, Stap notes that human interference and ecological changes are threatening the grounds that these birds migrate to.  The interference and "reclamation" of wetlands have already proven to be a threat to this way of life; also, ongoing climate change could very likely lead to changes in wind patterns, which these species depend on to accurately migrate.  Through his use of process analysis, Stap shows that, while these birds are capable of amazing feats, humanity's ongoing interference in the natural world could ultimately have horrific circumstances to their natural way of life.