Fly Away Home is a 1996 movie about the daughter (Anna Paquin) of a divorced man (Jeff Daniels) who, with her father, leads a flock of geese from Canada to a wildlife refuge in the US.

The film was loosely based on the real-life experiences of Bill Lishman, a Canadian inventor, artist, and ultralight aircraft enthusiast. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Lishman openly wondered if waterfowl could be taught new migration patterns by following low-speed ultralight gliders. In 1993, after several years of logistical and bureaucratic setbacks, Lishman successfully led a flock of Canada Geese on a winter migration from Ontario, Canada to Northern Virginia. Of the sixteen birds that participated in the migration, thirteen returned to Ontario the following year - entirely on their own.

The project was dubbed Operation Migration .

Following the successful experiment with Canada Geese, Lishman turned his efforts towards rare and endangered waterfowl, most notably the whooping crane. As of 2005, Lishman continues to lead waterfowl on annual migratory excursions.

External links

• Official site
• Operation Migration