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! 

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. 

Wingston has moved from his temporary home in Central African Republic in recent days and has headed south into the Republic of Congo.

He is currently deep in the inaccessible Lac Télé Community Reserve, a vast protected area home to a significant population of Western Lowland Gorillas and designated an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International.

Just under a week ago, Wingston was in central Cameroon. 

In recent days he has made his way into Central African Republic, and he is presently deep in the tropical rainforests on the edge of the Dzanga-Sangha Special Reserve. This UNESCO-World Heritage site, which borders the Republic Of The Congo, is known for its diverse wildlife including Western Lowland Gorilla, Chimpanzee, Forest Elephant, and Dzanga robin, an endemic subspecies of Yellow-breasted Forest Robin.

After a week in the Zamfara region of north-western Nigeria, Wingston took off on Tuesday evening and headed south-east. Overnight, he passed through the Kwiambana Game Reserve and after a flight of around 310 km (193 miles) he settled for the day in an area to the west of Lame Burra Game Reserve in central Nigeria. 

Yesterday evening, he pushed on again, and flew a further 660 km (410 miles), passing through Gashaka-Gumti National Park in the south of the country, before crossing the border into Cameroon. 

By this morning, he was in the tropical forests of Mbam et Djerem National Park, which is home a spectacular range of animals and birds.       

In the last week, Wingston has been moving slowly eastwards into Nigeria. Currently in the Sokoto region in the north-west of the country, his arrival here is timed to coincide with the rainy season. 

After a spell in southern Mali, Wingston has now moved 520 km (323 miles) east through Burkina Faso and into south-west Niger. 

His latest signal, received yesterday evening, reveals that he is close to the capital Niamey, not far from the northern border of Benin and the north-west border of Nigeria.

Last week, we posted that Wingston had left the European mainland and was winging his way toward North Africa. 

He arrived on the Algerian coast, just west of the capital Algiers, before heading south across the Sahara desert. He then crossed Mali and just after 10pm last night he was close the border of Burkina Faso, just north of the Sahel Reserve, a protected area covering 16,000 km2  (9,941 sq mi). In the last five days, he has covered well over 2,500 km (1,553 miles). 

Wingston, it would seem, has finally tired of the excitement of Montpellier, where he has been since mid-June. This morning, we saw that his latest signal places him mid-way across the Mediterranean, just off the south-west coast of Sardinia. 

If he continues in this direction he will arrive in North Africa close to the Moroccan / Tunisian border shortly. From here he can proceed with the next leg of his remarkable journey – across the Sahara!

It’s almost two weeks since Wingston set down just to the north of Montpellier in southern France. Tracking data show that he has been exploring over quite a wide area, hopefully finding lots of food to fuel the next leg of his journey.

The first of our tagged Cuckoos to set off, Wingston is still leading the pack. Currently enjoying the delights of southern France, he is just north of Montpellier, close to the Mediterranean Sea. 

From here, will he head eastwards through Italy, west through Spain, or make a direct crossing into North Africa? 

Named by sponsors Cuckoo Broadband, Wingston Churchbill was tagged at Wisborough Green, West Sussex on May 14.

The first of our birds to start his post-breeding migration, he as already covered 520 km (323 miles), having left the UK just west of Worthing before crossing the Channel. He then headed inland toward Paris, after which he redirected toward the south-west, and our latest signal places him in the Loire Valley, between Angers and Tours. The race is on!