Illinois Motus Network

As part of the telemetry initiative of the Midwest Migration Network, we are better trying to understand airspace conservation, stopover behavior and ecology, and phenology as it relates to migratory birds in the Midwest.

To do this, the group has made expanding the Motus network across midwestern states like Illinois a priority.  The Motus Wildlife Tracking System is an international collaborative network of researchers that use automated radio telemetry to simultaneously track hundreds of individuals of numerous species of birds, bats, and insects. The system enables a community of researchers, educators, organizations, and citizens to undertake impactful research and education on the ecology and conservation of migratory animals. When compared to other technologies, automated radio telemetry currently allows researchers to track the smallest animals possible, with high temporal and geographic precision, over great distances. Much more about Motus can be found HERE.

A newsletter is published every six months to detail the latest updates to the Motus network in Illinois as well as to showcase some of the research projects that are utilizing the network. Previous newsletters can be accessed at the following links:

Illinois Motus Newsletter Spring 2025Download
Illinois Motus Newsletter Fall-2025Download

When?

The first Motus stations in Illinois were placed in 2020.  After five years of planning and installing Motus stations, there are now three fully functional fences of Motus stations placed latitudinally in Illinois. The northern fence runs from Galena, IL to Chicago, IL along the Wisconsin-Illinois border. The central fence runs from Quincy, IL to Danville, IL paralleling I-72. The southern fence runs from St. Louis, MO to Evansville, IN just south of the I-64 corridor. Other stations can be found along the Illinois River Valley and Lake Michigan shoreline among other spots, and the total stands at Stations are positioned approximately 15-20 miles to increase the likelihood that a migrating bird will be detected as it flies across the state. In fact, one Swainson’s Thrush was detected at two adjacent towers at the same time as it flew between Mines of Spain (Dubuque, IA) and Council Hill last in spring 2024.

Approximately 200 tags have been deployed on birds (Northern Saw-whet Owl, Wood Thrush, migratory songbirds, etc.) over the past year in just Illinois alone.  Some tags have lifespans of a couple months while others may have lifespans of a couple years.  Many more tags have been deployed the past year on other species outside the state.  All of these tags have the potential to be detected by towers in Illinois—especially during spring or fall migrations.  Two large collaborative projects involving mass deployments of tags over a two year period are currently underway (250 Northern Saw-whet Owl and 1,000 Wood Thrush) across the full ranges of these species.

The above pictures show a Motus transmitter (left), a saw-whet owl with a transmitter attached to it (middle), and the saw-whet owl after it has been released—note the antenna below the tail (right).

Where?

There are currently (October 2025) 44 Motus stations in Illinois.  The Ward Lab at UIUC has made a conscious effort to install arrays of Motus stations in east/west orient fences every 15-20 miles across the state to systematically track birds as they migrate across the state.  Three such fences exist: 1) along the I-64 corridor, 2) along the I-72 corridor, and 3) along the Wisconsin/Illinois border. Other stations were placed opportunistically based on interest, funding, and potential tag deployment sites.

We would like to thank the following landowners and site stewards for their support in hosting and maintaining Motus stations across the state:

  1. Illinois Ozarks Nature Preserve (Mike & Joann Fricke)
  2. Peabody River King SFWA (IDNR; Becky & Rick Avara)
  3. Bohbrink Woods (IDNR; Ward Lab)
  4. Camp Dubois (Illinois South Conference UCC; Jason & Leah Petry)
  5. Wayne Fitzgerrell SRA (IDNR; Ward Lab)
  6. Ten Mile Creek SFWA (IDNR; Ward Lab)
  7. Kanella Renshaw (Natural Land Institute; Ward Lab)
  8. Kickapoo State Park (IDNR; Ward Lab)
  9. Kennekuk 1 (Vermilion County Conservation District; Ward Lab)
  10. Kennekuk 2 (Vermilion County Conservation District; Ward Lab)
  11. Kennekuk 4 (Vermilion County Conservation District; Ward Lab)
  12. Kennekuk 5 (Vermilion County Conservation District; Ward Lab)
  13. Kennekuk 6 (Vermilion County Conservation District; Ward Lab)
  14. Phillips Tract (University of Illinois; Ward Lab)
  15. University of Illinois Campus (University of Illinois; Ward Lab)
  16. Allerton Park (University of Illinois; Nate Beccue)
  17. Allerton South (University of Illinois; Nate Beccue)
  18. Illinois Raptor Center (IRC; Jacques Nuzzo & Travis Wilcoxen)
  19. Buffalo (Scully Estates; Ward Lab)
  20. Lake Bloomington (City of Bloomington, Given Harper)
  21. Jubilee Farms (Dominican Sisters of Springfield; Tony Rothering)
  22. Mudd (Ralph Mudd; Ward Lab)
  23. Spunky Bottoms (The Nature Conservancy; Denim Perry)
  24. Siloam Springs State Park (IDNR; Ward Lab)
  25. Chautauqua NWR (USFWS; Forbes Biological Station
  26. Banner Marsh SFWA (IDNR; Forbes Biological Station)
  27. Dixon Waterfowl Refuge (Wetlands Initiative; Ward Lab)
  28. Council Hill (Steve Birkbeck)
  29. Warren (Black Hawk Park District; Joel Fonseca)
  30. Hartman Lydon (Jane Addamsland Park Foundation; Brad Semel)
  31. Sand Bluff (Forest Preserves of Winnebago County; Liz Hucker)
  32. Reinerts’ Rest (Ken & Martha Reinert; Brad Semel)
  33. Lake Petit (MPG Ranch; Brad Semel)
  34. Chain o’ Lakes State Park (IDNR; Brad Semel)
  35. Illinois Beach (IDNR; Brad Semel)
  36. Needham (Forest Preserves of Kane County; Sadie Dainko)
  37. Big Marsh (Chicago Park District; Chicago Ornithological Society)
  38. Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum (Audubon Great Lakes)
  39. Chicago Botanic Garden (Audubon Great Lakes)
  40. Ryerson Conservation Area (Lake County Forest Preserves)
  41. Greenbelt Forest Preserve (Audubon Great Lakes)
  42. Savanna (USFWS, Mike Wells)
  43. Two Rivers (USFWS, Mike Wells)
  44. Woodford (Sherri Morris, Anant Deshwal)
The map above shows the locations of stations in the Illinois Motus Network as of 10/22/25. Yellow circles are 166.380 MHz compatible stations. Magenta circles are 166.380 & 434 MHz compatible stations.

Why?

Understanding bird migration and movement patterns more generally allows us make better informed and effective conservation decisions.  It allows us to better protect migration corridors as we can help minimize mortality risks to heavily trafficked areas.  It also helps us understand what breeding and wintering habitats should be protected—especially for sensitive species and those in decline.

While technology has increased what we can do to track bird movement and behavior in recent years, one major barrier to furthering the field is the weight of transmitters that can be placed on a bird.  We have been able to place transmitters that collect GPS locations and transmit them via cellular data plans to the internet on Canada geese and black-crowned night-herons, but these transmitters are costly and cannot be safely or ethically affixed to birds smaller than 100 grams in most cases.  However, smaller radio transmitters can safely and ethically be affixed to these smaller birds.  The caveat is that it is necessary to have a tower/antenna near the path the bird travels in order to detect the bird’s location and obtain information about when/where/how the bird is migrating.  This has led to the formation of the Motus network and the concept of our latitudinal fences that would increase the likelihood of a bird being detected as it moved north or south into or out of the state.

This shows a Northern Saw-whet Owl with a tag deployed in November of 2022 in Danville, IL as it migrated north to breeding grounds in April of 2023 and passed other Motus towers in Michigan and Ontario.

How?

Site Selection

  • Antennas are placed in areas with minimal background radio noise to reduce interference of signals. 
  • They are placed at an elevation above the surrounding area to increase the view of the horizon and the detection distance of potential tags.
  • Attempts are made to secure sites in a way where equipment is not likely to be stolen or vandalized.
  • Sites with electrical access are preferable though solar power options exist and are implemented at many of our stations across the state.
  • We try to place antennas in a location that allows for individuals to easily access them for monitoring.

Establishment of Station

  • The basic components of our Motus stations in Illinois include four antennas  (each cardinal direction), a power system (battery, solar panel, charge controller), and a receiver.
  • Frequently antennas are mounted to a 25G Rohn tower (20-40’) which is secured via wire rope to earth anchors.  However, some of our antennas have been attached to existing structures (ie. 100’ Chautuaqua fire tower).

Station Maintenance

  • Ideally, towers would be monitored monthly.  We are looking for volunteers willing to be trained to monitor a tower and then communicate with the state Motus coordinator about tower status.  Such volunteers would check battery voltage, extract the data from the receiver, and provide information about receiver function (if it is powered on, what LED lights are illuminated, etc.).  This is roughly a 20 minute time commitment each month.
  • Our lab visits most stations twice yearly (once in March and once August/September) to check antenna function, run diagnostics, and perform any other maintenance necessary prior to the migratory seasons.

Detections

The following birds that were tagged outside the state have been detected at our towers in Illinois:

Detection DateReceiverSpeciesOriginal Deployment Site
7/28/2025Illinois Raptor Center Wood ThrushLudington, Wisconsin
7/27/2025Illinois Ozarks Lesser YellowlegsLa Pasada, Chile
5/25/2025Chain o' Lakes State Park American RedstartFonthill Nature Reserve, Jamaica
5/15/2025Bohbrink Woods American RedstartFonthill Nature Reserve, Jamaica
5/12/2025Kickapoo Eastern Whip-poor-willSpringford, Ontario
5/9/2025Allerton Indiana BatMammoth Cave NP, Kentucky
5/8/2025Phillips Tract Indiana BatMammoth Cave NP, Kentucky
5/7/2025Buffalo Wood ThrushSan Mateo Yetla, Oaxaca
5/3/2025Phillips Tract Wood ThrushIndiana Dunes NP, Indiana
5/1/2025Allerton South Indiana BatMammoth Cave NP, Kentucky
5/1/2025Allerton South Indiana BatMammoth Cave NP, Kentucky
5/1/2025Peabody River King Wood ThrushPortage, Michigan
5/1/2025Illinois Ozarks Wood ThrushCalkins Natural Area, Iowa
4/29/2025Peabody River King Wood ThrushBent of the River Sanctuary, Connecticut
4/29/2025Allerton Wood ThrushSan Mateo Yetla, Oaxaca
4/29/2025Kickapoo Wood ThrushBent of the River Sanctuary, Connecticut
4/29/2025Kickapoo Wood ThrushPikes Peak State Park, Iowa
4/29/2025Kickapoo Wood ThrushCamp Ripley, Minnesota
4/29/2025Illinois Raptor Center Wood ThrushJasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area, Indiana
4/29/2025Lake Petite Wood ThrushLudington, Wisconsin
4/29/2025Lake Petite Baltimore OrioleOrangeburg, South Carolina
4/28/2025Peabody River King Wood ThrushSan Mateo Yetla, Oaxaca
4/28/2025Bohbrink Woods Wood ThrushPioneer Ridge, Missouri
4/28/2025Bohbrink Woods Wood ThrushJasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area, Indiana
4/22/2025Illinois Ozarks Wood ThrushLittle Lost Creek Conservation Area, Missouri
4/18/2025Bohbrink Woods Wood ThrushMartell Forest, Indiana
4/18/2025University of IllinoisWood ThrushMartell Forest, Indiana
4/17/2025Peabody River King Eastern Whip-poor-willRowan Wood Sanctuary, Ontario
4/17/2025Peabody River KingEastern Whip-poor-will (#56956)Walshingham Super Tower, Canada
3/14/2025Kennekuk 2 Northern Saw-whet OwlEagle Creek Park, Indiana
3/14/2025Kennekuk 4 Northern Saw-whet OwlEagle Creek Park, Indiana
3/14/2025Kennekuk 5 Northern Saw-whet OwlEagle Creek Park, Indiana
3/14/2025Kickapoo Northern Saw-whet OwlEagle Creek Park, Indiana
3/12/2025Jubilee Farm Northern Saw-whet OwlOzark Nature Center, Arkansas
11/15/2024Bohbrink WoodsNorthern Saw-whet Owl (#56643)Whitefish Point, UP Michigan
11/9/2024Council HillNorthern Saw-whet Owl (#56643)Whitefish Point, UP Michigan
10/24/2024Bohbrink WoodsSwainson’s Thrush (#59763)Allan Hills, Canada
10/24/2024Sand BluffSwainson’s Thrush (#59778)Allan Hills, Canada
10/23/2024Banner Marsh State FWASwainson’s Thrush (#59763)Allan Hills, Canada
10/14/2024Illinois OzarksSwainson’s Thrush (#58778)Whistler, Canada
10/13/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#58751)Whistler, Canada
10/7/2024Council HillSwainson’s Thrush (#58808)Whistler, Canada
10/7/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#58808)Whistler, Canada
10/3/2024University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignSwainson’s Thrush (#58816)Whistler, Canada
10/3/2024Kennekuk 5Swainson’s Thrush (#58816)Whistler, Canada
10/2/2024University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignSwainson’s Thrush (#58822)Whistler, Canada
10/2/2024Ten Mile CreekRed-eyed Vireo (#58029)Old Cut, UP Michigan
10/1/2024University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignSwainson’s Thrush (#59247)McClain, MT
10/1/2024Council HillSwainson’s Thrush (#59247)McClain, MT
10/1/2024Bohbrink WoodsSwainson’s Thrush (#58779)Whistler, Canada
10/1/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#53025)Whistler, Canada
9/26/2024Council HillSwainson’s Thrush (#58822)Whistler, Canada
9/25/2024Illinois OzarksSwainson’s Thrush (#58764)Whistler, Canada
9/23/2024Bohbrink WoodsSwainson’s Thrush(#58746)Whistler, Canada
9/23/2024Ten Mile CreekWood Thrush (#55795)Pikes Peak, IA
9/23/2024Illinois Beach State ParkHoary Bat (#58360)Old Cut Tower, UP Michigan 
9/23/2024Council HillWood Thrush (#56056)Camp Ripley, MN
9/23/2024University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignWood Thrush (#56056)Camp Ripley, MN
9/23/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#51767)Whistler, Canada
9/23/2024AllertonWood Thrush (#56332)Camp Ripley, MN
9/21/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#51712)Whistler, Canada
8/31/2024Chain o Lakes State ParkSwainson’s Thrush (#52997)Asociación Ambiental Finca Cántaros, Costa Rica
8/2/2024Kennekuk 3Canada Goose (#54386)Cabot Beach, Prince Edward Island
7/30/2024Kennekuk 3Eastern Whip-poor-will (#56956)Walshingham Super Tower, Canada
7/30/2024Kennekuk 3Wood Thrush (#55641)Camp Ripley Junction, MN
7/8/2024Kennekuk 1Canada Goose (#54386)Cabot Beach, Prince Edward Island
6/6/2024Kennekuk 5Canada Goose (#54386)Cabot Beach, Prince Edward Island
5/20/2024AllertonWood Thrush (#52186)Hill Bank, Belize
5/20/2024AllertonWood Thrush (#52495)Hill Bank, Belize
5/20/2024AllertonMourning Warbler (#52411)Finca El Placer, Colombia
5/20/2024AllertonCanada Goose (#54386)Cabot Beach, Prince Edward Island
5/19/2024AllertonSwainson’s Thrush (#51062)Havana, Cuba
5/19/2024AllertonEastern Whip-poor-will (#50483)Old Cut, Canada
5/18/2024AllertonWood Thrush (#51808)Hill Bank, Belize
5/17/2024AllertonRusty Blackbird (#46769)Terrace, Maine
4/19/2024Kennekuk 2Canada Goose (#54386)Cabot Beach, Prince Edward Island
6/19/2023PumphousePrairie Warber (#46847)Split Rock, Canada
5/12/2023Swan BayDark-eyed Junco (#44852)Kent Farm Research Station, IN
4/24/2023Swan BayDark-eyed Junco (#44868)Kent Farm Research Station, IN
4/9/2023Sand BluffDark-eyed Junco (#44859)Kent Farm Research Station, IN
4/9/2023Illinois Beach State ParkDark-eyed Junco (#44859)Kent Farm Research Station, IN
4/3/2023Illinois Beach State ParkDark-eyed Junco (#44854)Kent Farm Research Station, IN
7/22/2022Swan BayLesser Yellowlegs (#40004)Churchill, Canada
10/5/2021University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignEastern Whip-poor-will (#32900)Torrance, Canada