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We used satellite telemetry to follow the migrations of two populations of Bar-tailed Godwits, a group of 9 from New Zealand (NZ) and a group of 15 from Western Australia (WA). The birds from WA represent a subspecies that nests in eastern Siberia whereas the New Zealand birds nest in Alaska. We are using these data to compare the migration strategies of the two populations.
The northward journey of the Bar-tailed Godwits began in mid-March and included a several-weeks-long stopover at coastal sites in the Yellow Sea. Birds then continued to their respective breeding areas where they spent most of June and July. In late August, the birds began their southward journeys from the Yellow Sea region and by early October the last godwit was tracked back to Roebuck Bay in WA. Recently, observers on the ground in NZ and WA have resighted several of the tagged birds!
Click on the Maps page to see some photos of the individual birds.
Synopsis of the 2007 effort
“Beyond all expectations” would not overstate the information obtained from the 16 godwits that were satellite-tagging in New Zealand in February 2007. In brief, this would include: 1) godwits from both North and South islands flying directly and non-stop to the Yellow Sea, 2) the North Yellow Sea and particularly the area around the Yalu Jiang Nature Reserve being a critical staging place, 3) birds also having non-stop flights from the Yellow Sea to the breeding grounds in Alaska, 4) the Kuskokwim Shoals off the mouth of the Kuskokwim River again proving to be the single most important autumn staging site for godwits in Alaska, 5) the third and final leg of the annual flight, that from Alaska to the nonbreeding grounds, being direct across the central Pacific Ocean, and 6) what would become the media darling, godwit ‘E7’ (see below), being tracked over her complete flight after leaving New Zealand in mid-March to her return in early September, an odyssey that covered almost 30,000 kilometers. Even the one bird (Y3) that did not migrate from New Zealand still provided a wealth of information on her use of the Farewell Spit area during the six-months her satellite-tagged mates were away from the area. |
Epic Flight Across the Pacific - USGS Newsroom, 12 Sep 07
You need Google Earth installed on your computer to view an interactive file of godwit movements. Click here to get Google Earth free. Click on the movements link below. If Google Earth doesn't automatically open, refer to the instructions at .
THE FOLLOWING IMAGES ARE BASED ON PRELIMINARY DATA. THEY ARE NOT FOR USE WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE USGS ALASKA SCIENCE CENTER.
 Click the godwit to download the kmz file and view an interactive map.
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2 messages only, no accuracy estimation |
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>1500 m |
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<350 m |
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3 Messages only, no accuracy estimation |
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<1000 m |
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<150 m |
 Click on PRBO's logo to view an additional interactive map.
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