New bird
tracking
technology
installed
Center participates
in world research effort
POMFRET — The structure behind the equipment barn at 218 Day Road resembles the old-fashioned, outdoor television antennas that once were ubiquitous. It is, in fact, the latest technology for tracking migratory birds. It is one of more than 1,300 receivers in the Motus Wildlife Tracking System, a rapidly expanding network of automated stations around the world.
Motus is the Latin word for movement.
How does it work? Birds are fitted with tiny, lightweight radio transmitters (nanotags) and the station receives their signals, usually within a 6-to-10-mile radius of the receiver. The nanotags’ small size and weight allow researchers to attach them to the smallest of migrant birds and not interfere with their activities. Bats, butterflies, and dragonflies also have been tagged. Nanotags broadcast on a single frequency and receivers are tuned to that frequency. Each bird’s tag transmits a unique signature, a coded pulse, and thus identifies the specific bird wearing it. Any receiver site the bird nears will record its passing.
As of the most recent data upload, nine tagged birds have passed by the Pomfret station – Bobolink, Least Sandpiper, Swainson’s Thrush, Yellow-rumped Warbler, American Pipit, White-throated Sparrow, Rusty Blackbird, and two Hermit Thrushes. With spring migration underway, we expect more individuals and species to be detected, said Sarah Heminway, CAS Director Northeast Region.
The beauty of Motus, compared with other tracking systems, is that a bird does not have to be recaptured or its leg band returned to learn information about its travels. And Motus provides more complete migration data. In addition to knowing the beginning and end of a bird’s route, we know points it passed along the way, when and how quickly it passed them, and how long it stayed in the vicinity of the receiver site.
This migration data, centralized at Motus, has major implications for research and decision-making on a regional/landscape scale. For example, the data has direct conservation value in identifying and protecting stopover sites used by certain bird species.
Other means of collecting migratory and behavioral data such as banding, light-level geolocators (sunrise and sunset data corresponding to latitude and longitude), and feather analysis remain valid, complementing Motus. Methodology depends on the species being studied and the questions researchers are trying to answer.
If you are interested in bird banding, register for the bird banding demonstration at the Bafflin Sanctuary at 9 a.m. May 21 by emailing
To learn more about the Motus Wildlife Tracking System, see a map with receiver locations, view animated tag tracks, and explore data, visit the Motus website: motus.org.
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