Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust

In Spring 2022, the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust was awarded a £2,500 grant from Sea-Changers to install the first Motus Wildlife Tracking System in Lincolnshire. Installed in 2023 at the Gibraltar Point Nature Reserve and Bird Observatory, the receiver station is now actively contributing to international efforts to track and understand the movements of migratory species.

The Motus Wildlife Tracking System is a collaborative research network that uses VHF (Very High Frequency) audio telemetry to track small animals—primarily birds and bats, and occasionally large insects. Animals are fitted with tiny VHF radio transmitters, and when they pass within range of a receiver station, their presence is logged. This allows scientists to track their movements across vast distances with remarkable precision.

The station at Gibraltar Point supports a wider effort to monitor the movement of tagged wildlife and further our understanding of bird and bat migration. In doing so, we can start to identify and understand environmental pressures and how different species are influenced by weather and changes in the marine environment.

Since becoming operational, the Gibraltar Point station has clearly demonstrated its value. On 16th October 2023, the station recorded its first signal: a Yellow-Browed Warbler, originally tagged on the Dutch coast, marking a significant success for the project. The Lincolnshire Coast Motus Partnership has now identified five additional potential receiver sites along the coast in collaboration with local partners. This expansion would dramatically increase the system’s ability to monitor wildlife movement and strengthen Lincolnshire’s role in the international Motus network.