Scientists hail golden age to trace bird migration with tech

Ecologist Emily Williams watches through binoculars from behind a bush. On this clear spring day, she's snooping on his dating life. "Now I'm watching to see whether he's found a mate," she said, scrutinizing his interactions with another robin in a nearby tree. Once the bird moves on at season's end, she'll rely on the backpack to beam frequent location data to the Argos satellite, then back to Williams' laptop, to track it. The goal is to unravel why some American robins migrate long distances, but others do not. With more precise information about nesting success and conditions in breeding and wintering grounds, "we should be able to tell the relative roles of genetics versus the environment in shaping why birds migrate," said Williams, who is based at Georgetown University.

Putting beacons on birds is not novel. But a new antenna on the International Space Station and receptors on the Argos satellite, plus the shrinking size of tracking chips and batteries, are allowing scientists to remotely monitor songbird movements in much greater detail than ever before. "We're in a sort of golden age for bird research," said Adriaan Dokter, an ecologist at Cornell University who is not directly involved with Williams' study. "It's pretty amazing that we can satellite-track a robin with smaller and smaller chips. Ten years ago, that was unthinkable." The device this robin is wearing can give precise locations, within about 30 feet (about 10 meters), instead of around 125 miles (200 kilometers) for previous generations of tags.

The antenna of an Argos satellite tag extends past the tail feathers of a female American robin as she feeds a worm to her hungry nestlings on a front porch in Cheverly, Md., Sunday, May 9, 2021. A new antenna on the International Space Station and receptors on the Argos satellite, combined with the shrinking size of tracking chips and batteries, are allowing scientists to remotely monitor small animal and songbird movements in much greater detail than ever before. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

An American robin sits in a nylon net at sunrise, Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams uses nets to catch robins and possibly fit them with an Argos satellite tag. "It's astounding how little we know about some of the most common songbirds," said Ken Rosenberg, a conservation scientist at Cornell University. "We have a general idea of migration, a range map, but that's really just a broad impression." Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams gently untangles an American robin from a nylon mist net Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. Williams is gathering data and samples to possibly fit the bird with a Argos satellite tag. The technology has only recently become small and light enough for some songbirds. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams gently lowers an American robin into a plastic cup on a scale as she gathers data and fits the bird with an Argos satellite tag, Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. Tracking devices must be less than 5% of the animal's weight to avoid encumbering them. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams fits an Argos satellite tag to an American robin, like a backpack, Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. The device can give precise locations, within about 30 feet (about 10 meters), instead of around 125 miles (200 kilometers) for previous generations of tags. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams measures the beak of an American robin as she gathers data to possibly fit the bird with an Argos satellite tag, Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. The American robin is an iconic songbird in North America, its bright chirp a harbinger of spring. Yet its migratory habits remain a bit mysterious to scientists. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams fits an Argos satellite tag to an American robin, like a backpack, Saturday, April 24, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md. Scientists have previously put GPS-tracking devices on larger raptors, but the technology has only recently become small and light enough for some songbirds. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams prepares bird netting in the hope of catching American robins, Thursday, May 6, 2021, in a backyard in Silver Springs, Md. Using satellite tracking tags, the goal is to unravel why some American robins migrate long distances, but others do not. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams, right, and a volunteer watch bird netting with binoculars from distance for American robins, Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in Cheverly, Md. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams sets up a sidewalk work station Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in Cheverly, Md., as she prepares to net and place Argos satellite tags on America robins. Williams hopes more detailed data from the tags, combined with records of nesting success, will provide insights, and she's working with partners who are tagging robins in Alaska, Indiana and Florida for a three-year study. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

An Argos satellite tag is seen on the back of an American robin, Thursday, May 6, 2021, in Silver Springs, Md. With more precise information about nesting success and conditions in breeding and wintering grounds, "we should be able to tell the relative roles of genetics versus the environment in shaping why birds migrate," says avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

The antenna of an Argos satellite tag extends past the tail feathers of an American robin as it bobs its head down to feed on worms and insects on a lawn in Cheverly, Md., Sunday, May 9, 2021. Putting beacons on birds is not novel. But a new antenna on the International Space Station and receptors on the Argos satellite, plus the shrinking size of tracking chips and batteries, are allowing scientists to remotely monitor songbird movements in much greater detail than ever before. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

An antenna from an Argos satellite tag extends past the tail feathers of an American robin as it darts around a front lawn in Cheverly, Md., Sunday, May 9, 2021. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more

Avian ecologist and Georgetown University Ph.D. student Emily Williams releases an American robin, too light to be fitted with an Argos satellite tag, after gathering samples and data and applying bands, Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in Cheverly, Md. The American robin is an iconic songbird in North America, its bright chirp a harbinger of spring. Yet its migratory habits remain a bit mysterious to scientists. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Read more