For the first time in South Africa, scientists monitored the migrations of 23 small wading birds from the country’s west coast as they embarked on a migration to the Arctic tundra, uncovering stopover sites they say could benefit from protection.In February 2026, the researchers captured 23 birds in Western Cape province and tagged them with tiny satellite transmitters to followed their movements, tracing different routes across Africa.Six of the birds have since reached their breeding grounds in the Arctic tundra, while six stayed in Africa, and eight stopped transmitting.The research project, a collaboration between BirdLife South Africa and other partners, is helping to shed light on the routes the birds take, and inform conservation action.
They have names like Victoria, Makgadikgadi, Wembere and Dwarskersbos — but unlike their namesakes, they’re not landmarks in Africa. Instead, they’re small birds flying halfway across the world, showing conservationists the places that should be protected to sustain them on their journeys.
Earlier this year, an international team of scientists and conservationists trapped 20 curlew sandpipers (Calidris ferruginea), small to medium-sized shorebirds characterized by their distinct downward curving bill, and fitted them with tiny, lightweight satellite transmitters. The researchers also captured and fitted GPS tags on three gray plovers (Pluvialis squatarola), birds thought to have similar migratory patterns to the curlew sandpipers.
