PJ the Cuckoo breaks records

23 Apr 2021

Tagged in 2016 as part of our Cuckoo Tracking Project, PJ the Cuckoo has arrived back in his Suffolk home – becoming the first bird in the project to complete his fifth annual migration cycle.

This project, started in 2011, aims to find out why the UK's population of Cuckoos has dropped by over 50% in the last 20 years. After ten years and over 80 birds tagged we have learnt a huge amount about Cuckoo migration. By tagging Cuckoos with satellite tags, we can track their locations and learn about their journeys, discovering the consequences of the different routes they take, and identifying potential pressures they face whilst migrating.

In the five years since he was tagged, PJ has travelled over 50,000 miles to and from his breeding ground in King's Forest, Suffolk. Follow our tagged Cuckoos on a map and read regular updates on their journeys.