A tiny bird is breaking the internet with a display of its sheer will-power and tenacity.
Onon, a common cuckoo is impressing researchers and people all over the world with its amazing migration journey. The little bird flew from Kenya on 29th April, 2020. On 4th May – in merely five days – it was in Madhya Pradesh after crossing the Arabian Sea and entering India. That is 5,000 km of flying in a week! And as I write this, Onon has already reached Bangladesh!
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The Mongolia Cuckoo Project is a joint initiative by the Wildlife Science and Conservation Center (WSCC) of Mongolia and the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), facilitated by Birding Beijing.
According to the researchers, from 4-8 June 2019, five cuckoos – one Oriental Cuckoo and four Common Cuckoos – were fitted with transmitters around Khurkh Bird Banding Center in northern Mongolia. The birds have been named by local schools who will follow “their” birds to learn about the migration route and wintering grounds of these iconic birds. Onon has been named after a local Mongolian river.
A year ago, in June 2019, Onon had flown from Mongolia and entered India via Nepal. On 7 September it had been spotted in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh later flying to Gujarat and Rajasthan. After that, it flew to Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania.
The project was started to understand the migration pattern, favourite resting areas, routes and behaviour of these birds. For the project, the team is also getting help from scientists in Indonesia, Malaysia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and India.
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Writing about the birds and this project, Birding Beijing said,
“Thanks to modern technology, we are beginning to unlock the secrets of our migratory birds. And, although removing some of the mystery, gaining knowledge of these journeys in no way diminishes our awe at what these birds achieve in terms of endurance and navigation. Every year, a new generation of birds following in their predecessors wing-flaps, inspires a new group of people.”
When it all began in June 2019, one of the aims of the Mongolian Cuckoo Project was to engage the public about migratory birds and the places they need. Knowledge and experience are the first steps towards falling in love with nature and, as Baba Dioum, the Senegalese conservationist famously said:
“In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.”
Another of the cuckoos tagged for this project is Bayan who is at present in Kolkata, West Bengal. Like Onon, Bayan has flown an incredible 5,800 km in the last seven days.
You can follow the birds too by following @BirdingBeijing on Twitter who is also answering all questions related to the birds.
