A new research project unveils the flight paths of migratory birds over the Carolinas.
Catawba and Davidson colleges partnered with Queens University to install four bird-tracking radio towers this past winter. As of last month, they’re all connected to a larger mapping network called Motus. With more than 2,400 towers around the world, anyone can track tagged animals as they migrate.
Here’s how it works: Researchers first strap tiny radio “backpacks” to the critters they want to track. Be it bird, bat or bug, the 10-foot towers log them as they fly overhead.
The towers tell scientists how migratory species get from point A to point B. Queens biology professor Jeff Thomas said the new towers expand coverage of North Carolina’s Piedmont. It’s a region he called, “a crucial link in many birds’ migratory patterns.”
So far, the new sensors have picked up only wood thrushes — little brown birds with spotted white tummies. In May, one flew 400 miles from Catawba College to Philadelphia in seven hours on its way back from Central America.
Joe Poston, Biology Department chair at Catawba College, will work with students and faculty at Davidson and Queens to tag new migratory birds this fall.
“This project has been a fantastic opportunity to cooperate with scientists at Davidson and Queens,” Poston said in a written statement. “And it has given our students a chance to participate in cutting-edge conservation biology. I am pleased with our progress and am eager to tag some migratory birds to see where they go!”
