Tracking Cuckoos to Africa... and back again
The 'Red Listed' Cuckoo is one of the UK's fastest declining migrants and, until recently, was one of the migrants we knew least about once it left the UK.
In 2011 we attached satellite-tracking devices to five Cuckoos from Norfolk to find out more about the important stop-over sites and wintering destinations on the way to and from Africa. Read more about the project and find out what we have learnt so far.
In 2012 we will also be tagging Scottish Cuckoos, where populations are faring much better, to see if their migration strategies differ. We would like to tag Welsh birds too if we receive enough funding.
Would you or your organisation like to support the project by naming one of the class of 2012?
Knowing this information will be vital to fully understand the causes of their declines and inform conservation action.
To return to this page, or to spread the word, just type www.bto.org/cuckoos
Latest News
18 May - After their epic 10,000 mile journeys Chris and Lyster could have been forgiven for taking it easy for a while. However we continue to receive data from their tags showing that is far from the case!
Read the blogs below to find out more...
The Map
Click on the markers on the map to see the position of the most recent fix, zoom into their location and, if there are roads nearby, try dragging the little yellow man in the top left hand corner onto the map. If the roads turn blue, drop him on to the nearest road and you get a Cuckoo's eye view of the surroundings!
Each solar-powered Cuckoo tag will transmit every 48hrs, when sufficiently charged.
Read the Cuckoos' blogs
The five male Cuckoos fitted with satellite tags each have their own story. Click on the photos below to read about the exciting journeys made by each bird. We will be updating each blog on a regular basis so check back for the latest information on where these birds have been!
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| Clement's blog | Martin's blog | Lyster's blog | Kasper's blog | Chris's blog |
You can be part of this ground-breaking project:
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Sponsor a Cuckoo or buy a Cuckoo Sponsorship Gift Pack for a friend or relative
to the Cuckoo Tracking Project
Funds raised will help support work tracking Cuckoos as part of the Out of Africa appeal. As well as tracking Scottish birds in 2012, we would also like to track birds from Wales too, but we need further funds to be able to do this.
You can also support projects like this by becoming a BTO member today and you will be kept up-to-date with all our latest news.
Contact
Please contact cuckoos@bto.org for further details.
Thank you!
This satellite-tracking project is funded by a partnership between the BBC Wildlife Fund, BTO members (through the 2010 Christmas raffle) and Essex & Suffolk Water. The catching team comprised BTO staff: Chris Hewson and Phil Atkinson and volunteer BTO ringers: Paul Noakes and Justin Walker. Kasper Thorup and Mikkel Kristensen from the Natural History Museum of Denmark have kindly advised this project and assisted with the fieldwork. Raymond Klaassen from Lund University advised us when planning the project. Thanks to all the land owners who gave us permission to catch on their land and apologies if we didn't catch a Cuckoo - its not easy!
You can keep up to date with news from BTO by signing up to our free monthly e-newsletter.
Information on this page is only for illustrative purposes and can not be used without our permission © British Trust for Ornithology 2011.
