The Motus Wildlife Tracking System, Motus for short, is a
collaborative network of automated radio telemetry stations that facilitates
tracking small migratory animals over long distances. Stations across North America, South America, and Europe, listen continuously for radio pulses emitted by lightweight transmitters attached to flying animals, such as bats and birds. When the animal flies within range of a station, a uniquely identifiable radio pulse is detected and information about the animal and its movement is sent to Birds Canada.
View animals detected
by the Nemours Motus station
View Motus stations
Nemours has installed
Our Work With Motus
Supported by a generous grant from the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation, Nemours is coordinating with primary schools, universities, fellow non-profit organizations, and other partners to expand the network of Motus tracking stations in South Carolina. In 2021, Nemours installed a Motus station at our headquarters and our goal is to help create a ‘digital fenceline’ of stations that extends from the Lowcountry through the Upstate.
As Motus expands in South Carolina, these stations contribute to the larger Motus network, enhancing the ability to track wildlife across states, countries, and continents
A robust Motus network that fosters collaborative research allows researchers to answer questions that individuals would have difficulty addressing alone.
Using Motus, scientists can determine the importance of various landscapes across a species’ range so we can work to protect key habitats and reduce hazards caused by human disturbance. Time and money are always limiting factors in research and conservation, but Motus tracking stations offer a large-scale and relatively inexpensive tool to study animal movement across continents and guide scientists’ decisions in their efforts to conserve crucial habitats.
Interested in learning more about Motus, explore the frequently asked questions.
Motus enables the study of small animals, particularly songbirds. Satellite/GPS transmitters provide pinpoint accuracy, but are too big and heavy for most aerial migrants. Light-level geolocators, which use light level to determine location, are lightweight, but require an animal to be recaptured to retrieve location information. Not only are the transmitters used for Motus lightweight enough for the smallest animals, but also information about when and where an animal encounters Motus stations are recorded by stations, eliminating the need for recapture of an animal.
Since Motus stations continuously listen for transmitters that emit radio pulses at a set frequency, a station can detect transmitters 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Over 20 Motus stations are installed across the state, most along the coastline. Nemours and other partners are working to install Motus stations from Charleston to the Upstate along the I-26 corridor. Stations will be placed strategically to create a ‘digital fenceline’ that can detect aerial migrants making an overland migration across the state. The existing network of Motus stations already captures coastal migration across the state.
If you have a piece of property, consider hosting a Motus tracking station. Nemours and other partners are always on the lookout for potential new sites. Not interested in hosting a Motus station, no worries. Consider a donation to support the Foundation as we continue expanding Motus.