New Motus tower in Avon Lake shows the future of tracking birds

In February 2020, I attended the Ohio Bluebird Conference in Ashland. It was not only my first time attending the conference, but it was also a chance to visit Ashland University, where I attended on a baseball scholarship for two years. It was a chance to reminisce about the college days, but I was excited about the conference and the opportunity to learn more about bluebirds. One of the talks during the conference introduced me to Motus. I was captivated to learn of the technology and the information it could provide to scientists. Very small transmitters are attached to birds, which "ping" off of Motus towers — antenna structures strategically placed along bird routes — which then relays the information back to researchers. One of the slides presented during the talk showed the coverage area along Lake Erie — which had a large notable Motus gap over Lorain County. To the east, the nearest tower was Huntington Beach in Bay Village, and to the west, Old Woman's Creek in Huron. Determined to bridge this gap, I set my sights on bringing a Motus tower to Lorain County. Little did I know what a challenge that would become. About a month later, the world would change as COVID-19 began to spread. Everything grinded to a halt as we tried to understand and stay safe during the pandemic. Any hope of a Motus tower was put on hold. As the world began to recover in late 2021 and into early 2022, we turned our attention to trying to save Cromwell Park in Lorain, an Important Bird Area, from development. This effort consumed our volunteer board, putting many projects, including Motus, on hold. Later in 2022, I tried to revive the Motus project but was battling a cancer diagnosis — which included surgery in late 2022 and a yearlong treatment throughout 2023. Nonetheless, we were able to make some progress — we purchased the equipment, found an installer and received a grant from the Ohio Ornithological Society to help with the costs. Last fall, the project really took hold as Avon Lake Library agreed to host the tower. Understanding the opportunity and significance, the library was immediately interested and moved forward with us. Other frustrating installation challenges remained, but in mid-May, Chris Regan from Syracuse University, along with Avon Lake Library staff, completed the installation — finishing the four-year project. Thanks to library staffers Tony Frank, Shea Alltmont, Gerry Vogel and William Rutger who were so helpful. According to Birds Canada, creators of the system, "The Motus Wildlife Tracking System (Motus) is an international collaborative research network that uses coordinated automated radio telemetry to facilitate research and education on the ecology and conservation of migratory animals." There are Motus towers in 34 countries, with almost 1,800 towers. Over 40,000 animals and 300 species have been tagged. The tagged species are not limited to birds, as it can be used to track other animals, such as bats. The tags are so light that they can even be attached to monarch butterflies. These numbers will continue to grow. The Motus tracking system offers significant advantages over traditional banding as birds can be tracked throughout their lives — where they go, when they go and how fast they get there. It uses networks of automated radio telemetry stations and plays a significant role in advancing our understanding of bird migration. The information is uploaded immediately for any scientists or researchers to use. Traditional banding often relies on documented sightings and reporting. Many birds are never relocated. Motus further offers the advantages of wide geographic coverage. These towers are set up across continents, allowing the ability to track birds across vast areas, connecting information between breeding, wintering and stopover sites. It is a collaborative effort involving numerous research groups, conservation organizations and individual scientists across the globe. This collaboration enhances the sharing of migration data and facilitates large-scale studies that would be difficult for single research teams to conduct on their own. This data is also used to understand how birds use specific areas and how they respond to environmental changes. The Motus system can help assess the impact of land use changes, climate change and other environmental pressures on migratory species. Collecting migration data for birds is crucial for several important reasons: Conservation and Management: Migration data helps scientists and conservationists understand the routes birds take, the timing of their migrations and the locations of critical stopover habitats. Monitoring Biodiversity: Migration patterns indicate changes in biodiversity, habitat quality and climate shifts. Climate Change Research: Migration data shows how wildlife responds to climate change, aiding predictions of future impacts. Public Awareness and Education: Migration data can be used to engage the public and increase awareness about bird species and their habitats. Scientific Research: Migration data supports a wide range of scientific research beyond conservation, including studies on animal behavior, evolutionary biology and ecology. Overall, collecting migration data allows for a comprehensive understanding of bird populations which is vital for protecting them and ensuring the stability of the ecosystems they inhabit. An example of the scope of the project was my wife's experience in Costa Rica. One day while out looking for birds, one of the guides got a ping from a tower he had at his home. The Golden-winged warbler that pinged coincidentally had been tagged in Maine by a friend of a gentleman also on the birding tour in Costa Rica. What were the odds? Delays this spring pushed our installation past the heart of migration, but we got our first bird shortly after installing the tower. It was a white-throated sparrow, just recently tagged at Ohio State University. From early May 5 through May 13, it traveled from Columbus to Canada, a distance of nearly 400 miles, reaching speeds of almost 60 miles per hour. Motus data is available to anyone at www.motus.org. We have plans to put up a second tower this summer at the Lorain Public Library, which is a great location near the river and lake, completely closing the coverage gap.