As we head into December, we can expect our tagged Cuckoos to be fairly settled for the next few weeks. They should now be firmly in their ‘wintering’ grounds in the Congo basin, feasting on tropical insects, and trying to avoid getting eaten themselves – there are lots of predatory birds, mammals, and reptiles in that region!

Of the 11 tagged Cuckoos that left the UK in summer, we have continued to receive regular updates from nine. 

The furthest east of our birds are Joe and Sayaan, both of whom are in Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are currently just 12 km (7 miles) away from each other, in the dense rainforests to the north of the Busira River. 

Our most southerly Cuckoo is Cleeve, deep in the Republic of the Congo, close to the Léfini Faunal Reserve. He is in the same area as Wingston, who has in recent days been less than 40 km (25 miles) away from him. Cuckoo Norman is the west of these two birds, close to the Gabon border.

Furthest north we find Jim and Arthur, both in Gabon. Nearby is Ashok, less than 50 km (31 miles) to the south of Jim. Frederic has recently crossed the border of Republic of the Congo and headed east into the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where he is currently by the large freshwater Lake Mai-Ndombe.

Two birds, Cores and Wilfrid, made it across the Sahara but after some promising movements, we soon lost track of them. Cores’ signal stopped on 27 October, when he was in southern Chad, while we last heard from Wilfrid on 20 September as he moved toward Nigeria from Niger. It may be that these two ‘lost’ Cuckoos have reached the end of their lives, or that the satellite tags have failed. 

We may never know what happened to this pair, but we do know that each bird has provided us with remarkable information that has allowed us invaluable insights into the complex stories of Cuckoo migration. 

The remaining Cuckoos will likely remain in their wintering areas until February, when we will hope to see some movement as they prepare to commence their long flights back to Europe for the 2026 breeding season. For some of this Cuckoo cohort, it will be the first time that we get to follow their remarkable journeys north. 

We will, as always, keep an eye on the Cuckoos and as soon as we see signs that they’re starting to head back we will post updates and track their incredible progress once more! 

Arthur is continuing to move south and in the last week has flown almost 300 km (186 miles) into eastern Gabon, close to the border with Republic of the Congo. 

Since leaving Suffolk in early July, Arthur has flown well over 8,000 km (c5,000 miles) to get to his current location. 

Cleeve has spent the past six weeks or so in much the same area along the northern Nigeria border, with little sign of movement. 

However, in the last few days he has covered around 1,200 km (745 miles) and is now in the extensive forests of central Cameroon. Remarkably he is just 33 km (20 miles) away from Cuckoo Frederic!   

Frederic was in central Nigeria in mid-October. 

In recent days he has headed south-east into the depths of the central Cameroon forest-savanna region, just to the south of Mpem and Djim National Park. This vast protected area is home to at least 76 species of mammal including Leopard, Chimpanzee, Hippopotamus, and African Forest Elephant.

When we last checked in with Arthur a week ago, he had just arrived in north-west Cameroon. 

Now, he has headed 750 km (466 miles) into the Congo, where he is just on the western fringes of the Odzala-Kokoua National Park, in the Republic of the Congo.

Wingston continues to explore the Congo and has headed further south in recent days. 

He is currently close to the Léfini Faunal Reserve, a designated Important Bird Area due to the large numbers of birds present in its swamp forests, wooded grasslands and wetlands. 

In recent days, Arthur has left his chosen spot in north-eastern Benin, where he has spent the last few weeks. He has flown approximately 815 km (506 miles) to the south-east, sweeping across Nigeria and has just popped over the border into Cameroon.  

He is currently in the Takamanda National Park, a vast protected area set up in 2008 to help protect the endangered Cross River gorilla.

Joe moved south-east on 17 October, flying around 240 km (150 miles) deeper into the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

Currently in the immense tropical rainforests on the northern banks of the Busira River, Joe is just 36 km west of Cuckoo Sayaan!