Staff at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary recently installed a Motus Wildlife Tracking System station as part of Audubon’s Migratory Bird Initiative. Located in the Sanctuary backcountry, the antenna picks up radio signals emitted from birds outfitted with tracking devices if their flight path takes them within seven miles of the tower.

The station joins a growing network of 16 stations in the Audubon network and countless others around the world. The data collected by the antenna is uploaded to a database where researchers who use nanotags or other tracking technology can see the exact date and time when the tagged bird was in the vicinity of a tower.

By monitoring details about the timing and duration of migratory flights for individual birds of many species, scientists can better understand the timing and seasonal duration of migration. The data also informs land managers about birds’ seasonal habitat preferences, helping our staff learn more about the role the Sanctuary plays as a stopover point or passage for migratory birds while filling knowledge gaps across the broader science community.

Thank you to the staff who made this installation happen! Shawn Clem, Gio D'Achiardi, and Bill DeLuca, Migration Biologist with NAS, started off with a robust conversation on where to place the tower.

Gio, Pete Stelzer, and Randy Shaffer installed the physical tower in the backcountry. The Audubon Florida board saw the site as part of a field trip for their May meeting. 

This was a real team effort with National Audubon Society and the Sanctuary facilities and research staff.

See all stations in this network.

Learn more about this international program.