Amur falcon flies 5,000 kilometers from India to Somalia in just over five days
MOGADISHU, Somalia — A tiny Amur falcon tagged by Indian wildlife researchers has completed an astonishing 5,000-kilometer migration from northeastern India to Somalia in just over five days, officials said.
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The adult male, named Apapang, is one of three falcons — alongside Alang, a young female, and Ahu, an adult female — that began their journey on Nov. 11 after being tagged under Phase 2 of the Manipur Amur Falcon Tracking Project led by the Wildlife Institute of India. Tracking data show Apapang crossed central India before making a nonstop flight over the Arabian Sea to the Horn of Africa.
Supriya Sahu, additional chief secretary of Tamil Nadu’s Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department, announced Apapang’s arrival on the social media platform X, noting the bird has completed similar ocean crossings in previous years.
“Apapang has now done nearly 5,400 km, and it has taken him 5 days and 15 hours,” Sahu wrote.
Weighing only about 150 grams, the falcon covered close to 1,000 kilometers per day, including more than 3,000 kilometers in his first 76 hours after tagging. The feat underscores the species’ extraordinary endurance during one of the world’s most demanding bird migrations, linking forests in northeast India with East Africa’s coastlines.
The two other tagged falcons, Alang and Ahu, remain in flight. Researchers say their movements will add to a growing data set on routes, timing and survival strategies used by the small raptors during transoceanic crossings.
Amur falcons were once heavily hunted in parts of northeast India, but intensified conservation efforts over the past decade — driven in large part by local communities in Manipur — have sharply reduced threats during the birds’ stopovers. Villagers who once targeted the birds now help safeguard them, turning the annual migration into a source of regional pride and an example of community-led wildlife protection.
Wildlife scientists say Apapang’s latest flight is a timely reminder of how migratory species depend on cooperation across borders and ecosystems. By pinpointing flyways and critical stopover sites, satellite tagging projects help authorities focus protection where it matters most — especially during perilous nonstop ocean crossings like the one Apapang completed this week.
- Apapang, an adult male Amur falcon, flew from India to Somalia in just over five days.
- The bird is among three falcons tagged in Manipur under a Wildlife Institute of India project.
- Tracking shows a path across central India, then a nonstop Arabian Sea crossing.
- The falcon covered around 1,000 kilometers per day at a body weight of about 150 grams.
- Local conservation in northeast India, led by communities, has improved protections for the species.
Apapang’s splashdown in Somalia adds a new chapter to a migration that continues to captivate researchers and birdwatchers alike — a pocket-sized raptor conquering continents in a matter of days.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
