More than 200,000 migratory birds have arrived in Inner Mongolia. Satellite tracking is helping researchers study crane migration routes and protect wetlands.
More than 200,000 migratory birds have arrived at Tumuji National Nature Reserve in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as the autumn migration season reaches its peak. The reserve lies along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, a major migration route used by birds travelling between breeding and wintering grounds.
This season, researchers have recorded 15 species under China’s highest level of national protection, including Siberian cranes, great bustards and oriental storks. They have also spotted 20 species under the second-highest level of national protection, such as common cranes, Eurasian spoonbills and greater white-fronted geese.
Great bustards have a particularly strong presence in the reserve. Its stable population numbers about 280, accounting for roughly one-third of the global population of the eastern subspecies, according to local authorities. Meanwhile, the number of Siberian cranes passing through the reserve accounts for about 70 per cent of the global wild population.
Technology is also helping protect these seasonal visitors. Liu Gang, a ranger with more than 20 years of experience, said the reserve now uses 39 video-monitoring sites and drones to patrol more than 70 per cent of its area.
Further east, large numbers of migratory birds have arrived at Horqin National Nature Reserve to rest and feed before continuing their journeys. The reserve lies at the intersection of the East Asian–Australasian and West Pacific flyways.
Researchers there are using satellite tracking to learn more about the birds’ movements. In 2025, the reserve worked with National Bird Banding Centre of China to fit satellite transmitters to four common cranes. The tracking data suggested that the birds might belong to two distinct populations, with different breeding and wintering grounds.
One group appeared to travel north to breed in eastern Mongolia before wintering in parts of southwestern and eastern China. The other wintered around Jinzhou in Liaoning Province and Dongying in Shandong Province, then travelled north to breed in Hulunbuir in Inner Mongolia and Russia.
In October this year, researchers fitted satellite transmitters to another 10 common cranes and 21 hooded cranes to monitor their movements more closely.
Meanwhile, at Hulun Lake National Nature Reserve in Hulunbuir, tens of thousands of migratory birds, including swans, cormorants and herons, have gathered in the wetlands. Local monitoring recorded 34,744 swan geese, the highest number recorded at the reserve since monitoring began.
Together, these reserves offer important stopover sites for birds travelling across regions and national borders. By combining field observations with satellite tracking, researchers can better understand migration routes and support efforts to protect the birds along their journeys.
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