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Updates from our Cuckoos

Read the latest updates from our Cuckoos on their epic migration between the UK and tropical Africa, or track their movements in real-time on our Cuckoo migration map.

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Chris crossing the desert

20 Apr 2015

Over the weekend we received signals to show that Chris had embarked upon his desert crossing and was on his way north over Mali, 1345km (835 miles) north of his last location in Ghana. We will have to wait for further signals to see whether he has made it safely across.

Chris moves west at last

31 Mar 2015

Chris is on the move! A good quality signal on 31 March placed Chris just inside the border of Ghana, showing that Chris had made his move west, albeit later than in previous years. Since the last transmission received on 21 March he has covered 1700km (1060 miles).  We are glad to see he is once again on his way. This will be the fourth return journey over which we will have followed him - we wish him a safe return! 

Chris taking his time

25 Mar 2015

Chris is still at the same location in Central African Republic and has yet to move west. Looking back at his movements last year we can see that he is in almost the same area within Central African Republic as in 2014 but had left the area by 14 March and moved west to Nigeria. By the 21 March 2014 he was just inside Ivory Coast, as many of our other tagged Cuckoos are now. 

In the first two years Chris only ventured as far west as Ghana before making his desert crossing in early April. Last year was the first time he had ventured as far west as Ivory Coast. In all three years, however, he was in West Africa by this point in March and making the final preparations for his desert crossing in early to mid April. He embarked on his desert crossing last year slightly later on 12 April 2014.  

It's interesting to note that he was later leaving Europe this year compared to previous years. His delay in moving to West Africa will likely push the date of his desert crossing back and we will have to wait to see how this affects the rest of his journey.  

Chris and Livingstone on northern edge of forest

27 Feb 2015

In the last few days Chris has moved to the northern edge of the rainforest, having left his location in Congo and travelled 630km (390 miles). He has flown across the entire breadth of the forest spanning Congo and Central African Republic, at which point it is slightly narrower than to either the east and west. 

He is now in Central African Republic where Emsworthy, Livingstone and David are currently. Livingstone has also only moved to this area recently, travelling 590km (370 miles) north-east from Gabon. We now have five Cuckoos on the edge of the forest getting ready for the next stage of their migration to West Africa, where two of our Cuckoos already are. 

Chris leaves Angola

02 Feb 2015

No signals had been received from Chris' tag since the 21 Janaury but by the 2 February Chris was on the move again. Low quality signals show he had travelled the 490km (300 miles) north it took to leave Angola and take up a location in the  Reserve de chasse de la Lefin in Congo. This is the first stage of his migration north as he moves into the area many of the other tagged Cuckoos spent the winter. This isn't currently on the map due to the low quality but hopefully further signals will be received shortly confirming his location. 

Chris is on the move again

19 Dec 2014

Since arriving in Angola Chris has moved another 178km (110 miles) further south and west. He seems to be heading towards Luanda and the area that he spent last winter in. We last heard from him at 17.56 on 18 December.

Chris heads south to Angola once again!

12 Dec 2014

Having previously wintered in the swamp forests in Congo during the first two years of the project (2011/12 and 2012/13), Chris surprised us last year with his movement to Angola. We were intrigued to see whether he would stay in the swamp forests again this year or head further south to where he spent the later part of last winter. Now we have our answer! Signals received yesterdy afternoon revealed that he was once again in Angola, having travelled 685km (425 miles). Both he and Skinner are currently a bit further north-east of the locations they chose last year. 

Chris in Congo

21 Oct 2014

Chris is once again in Congo in the swamp forests in which he has spent previous winters. He made the journey over the 15 and 16 October to reach the Central African Republic, continuing on to Congo and reaching his current location, close to the Site Lac Tele- Likouala Aux Herbes, on 18 October.  Last year, he left the area at the beginning of December, having only spent one month there, and travelled even further south to reach Angola, where Skinner also spent the winter. Skinner has recently returned to Angola this year and we will have to wait and see whether Chris stays in the swamp forests or once again moves further south to join him. 

A period of recovery

12 Sep 2014

With most cuckoos now in the Sahel region, we're entering a fairly quiet period in the annual cycle of the tagged cuckoos with less movement than during the migration season.

Birds who completed their desert crossing will spend time in the Sahel recovering their body condition, and some may stay quite a long time. In previous years, cuckoos have stayed in this area for as much as several months, while others spend a shorter amount of time before moving south into the humid zone forests.

The eastern Sahel in Chad and south Sudan has received plenty of rain recently, and thus conditions are likely good for cuckoos. Northern Cameroon was slightly drier than average in August, and so cuckoos such as Derek, Dudley, Stanley, and Emsworthy may be moving on if foraging conditions aren't suitable.

Chris returns to Lake Chad

09 Sep 2014
Chris has finally crossed the Sahara and is now in the Lake Chad area. By the early morning of 4 September he was heading south over the Sahara in central Libya, suggesting he had left Sicily on the evening of 2 September. By late morning on the 6, he had completed his desert crossing and was at  his current location at the northern end of Lake Chad. From his northern Italy stopover to Lake Chad, Chris moved over 3,500 km over 5 days in his fourth successful autumn migration.
 
His current position in the Sahel is about 350 km further west than he was in 2011 and 2013 following his desert crossing, but is quite similar to his location following his 2012 crossing. These differences might potentially be attributed to wind drift. It remains to be seen whether Chris rejoins his previous routes south upon leaving Lake Chad, as he did in 2012. Chris will likely stay at his current position to recover condition following his migratory journey. In 2012, he was in the Lake Chad area for about a month before moving further south and east in Chad.
 

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