Satellite-tagged Amur falcons complete round-trip migration across 23 countries, return to Manipur

The satellite-tagged Amur falcons Apapang and Alang have completed a remarkable round-trip migration and returned to Manipur. Their journey covered nearly 20,000 kilometres across 23 countries. The return confirms that both birds survived an exceptionally demanding annual movement between their breeding and wintering areas.

The falcons arrived from China on Thursday. Their tracking signals showed that they had reached Manipur again after travelling through Asia and Africa. Their journey included a six-day, non-stop flight of nearly 6,000 kilometres between northeast India and Somalia, including a long crossing over the Arabian Sea.

Apapang and Alang are expected to spend two to three weeks at selected sites in the mountainous Tamenglong district. Local people protect the birds and look forward to their yearly return. The successful tracking also gives scientists valuable information about migration routes, stopovers and feeding conditions.

The Amur falcon is a migratory bird known mainly for eating insects. Its diet includes termites, ants, locusts and beetles, though it can also eat mice, smaller birds and lizards. The species travels between breeding grounds in Asia and wintering areas in Africa each year.

Amur falcons breed in northern China and Siberia. After the breeding season, they migrate south and west toward southern Africa. Their route includes stopovers in northeast India, where they pause and feed before undertaking a major flight toward Somalia and then continuing south.

The birds typically reach southern Africa between November and December. They remain there until March or April, then return to their breeding grounds by April and May. Their migration links distant ecosystems and makes protection at stopover sites especially important.

The two satellite-tagged falcons completed an enormous round-trip migration of nearly 20,000 kilometres. They crossed 23 countries during this journey. These figures show the extraordinary geographical scale of their annual movement between breeding grounds in Asia and wintering areas in southern Africa.

Their longest recorded nonstop flight was nearly 6,000 kilometres over six days. It connected northeast India with Somalia in Africa. The route included a crossing of roughly 3,000 kilometres over the Arabian Sea, leaving the birds with no land-based feeding stop during that part of the journey.

This long flight is one reason the stopover in northeast India matters so much. The falcons feed there and build fat reserves before departing. Satellite tracking has helped scientists understand these routes and the timing of stopovers, while also highlighting the need to protect the birds at key sites.

Manipur and other parts of northeast India are important stopovers because the falcons need food before their next long flight. The region provides abundant termites around several stopover sites. Eating these insects helps the birds accumulate the fat reserves needed for their demanding migration.

The birds use places such as Tamenglong district’s mountainous tracts before flying toward Somalia. Their journey includes nearly 6,000 kilometres of travel and about 3,000 kilometres over the Arabian Sea. A reliable feeding stop is therefore essential before they leave northeast India.

The region’s importance is both ecological and protective. Scientists have learned that termite availability helps shape the falcons’ migration strategies. Local people now eagerly await the birds’ return and protect them, following conservation work that began in Nagaland and later spread to Manipur and Assam.

Before attempting their longest flight, Amur falcons stop in northeast India and feed heavily. Their main food is termites, which are abundant around the stopover sites. This feeding allows them to accumulate fat reserves, an essential energy supply for a flight lasting several days.

The next leg stretches nearly 6,000 kilometres from northeast India to Somalia. About 3,000 kilometres of that route crosses the Arabian Sea. Because the birds cannot use ordinary land-based stopovers across such a wide stretch of water, the reserves built beforehand are especially important.

Scientists say super-abundant termite prey has helped shape the falcons’ migration strategies. Satellite tracking has revealed how the birds use the region and how long they remain. Protecting these feeding sites helps preserve the conditions required for their extraordinary nonstop journey.

Satellite tagging allowed scientists to follow the falcons after they were fitted with transmitters. Wildlife Institute of India scientists tagged Apapang, Alang and Ahu at the Chiuluan roosting site in Tamenglong district in November 2025. Signals from Apapang and Alang later confirmed that they had returned to Manipur.

The tracking revealed their extensive route across 23 countries and their remarkable flight between northeast India and Somalia. It also showed how the birds use northeast India as a stopover before continuing toward Africa. Such data helps scientists identify migration routes, stopover timing and feeding conditions.

Ahu’s transmitter stopped providing contact somewhere in Somalia earlier this year. Scientists therefore could not confirm the bird’s return with the other two. Apapang and Alang’s successful round trip nevertheless marked an important milestone for the tracking and conservation project.

The satellite-tagging project began in Nagaland in 2013 to address hunting at Amur falcon stopover sites. Tracking showed local people that the birds returned year after year and completed extraordinary long-distance journeys. This information helped build awareness around a species once threatened at its resting and feeding areas.

As falcons returned and some completed round trips multiple times, communities developed a sense of ownership. Local participation became central to protection. According to the environment ministry, hunters changed into protectors, resulting in complete protection of the migratory falcon at relevant sites in Nagaland.

The conservation effort continued with another tagging phase in 2016. Its success spread to neighbouring Manipur and Assam, where the birds also received protection. Later tagging in 2019, 2024 and 2025 has continued to provide information that can guide future conservation work.