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Bats in a Mediterranean Mountainous Landscape: Does Wind Farm Repowering Induce Changes at Assemblage and Species Level?

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Abstract

We reported data on flying bat assemblages in a Mediterranean mountain landscape of central Italy on a 5-year time span (2005–2010) where a wind farm repowering has been carried out (from 2009, 17 three-blade turbines substituted an a priori set of one-blade turbines). In 4 yearly based surveys, we calculated a set of univariate metrics at species and assemblage level and also performing a diversity/dominance analysis (k-dominance plots) to evaluate temporal changes. Nine species of bats were present (eight classified at species level, one at genus level). Number of detected taxa, Margalef richness, and Shannon–Wiener diversity apparently decreased between 2005–2007 (one-blade turbine period) and 2009–2010 (three-blade turbines period). We showed a weak temporal turnover only between 2007 and 2009. In k-dominance plots, the occurrence curves of the years before the new wind farming activity (2005 and 2007) were lower when compared to the curves related to the 2009 and 2010 years, suggesting an apparent stress at assemblage level in the second period (2009 and 2010). Myotis emarginatus and Pipistrellus pipistrellus significantly changed their relative frequency during the three-blade wind farming activity, supporting the hypothesis that some bats may be sensitive to repowering. Further research is necessary to confirm a possible sensitivity also for locally rare bats (Miniopterus schreibersii and Plecotus sp.).

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Roberto Toffoli for the support in the bat call analysis, Osvaldo Locasciulli, Elia Forlizzi, Andrea Storione, Giuliano Milana, and Giovanni Soccini for the help in field surveys. The authors are grateful to the people in charge and the technicians at ENECO S.r.l. who made this research possible to carry out. Dr. PhD. Alessandro Zocchi helped the authors in translating the manuscript into English language. Two anonymous reviewers have largely improved a first draft of the manuscript providing useful comments and suggestions.

Funding

This study was funded by ENECO S.r.l.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Studio Natura Arcadia, via Valverde 4, 01016, Tarquinia, Viterbo, Italy

    Vincenzo Ferri & Christiana Soccini

  2. ‘Torre Flavia’ Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) Station, Città Metropolitana di Roma, via Tiburtina, 691, 00159, Rome, Italy

    Corrado Battisti

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  1. Vincenzo Ferri
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Correspondence to Corrado Battisti.

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Ferri, V., Battisti, C. & Soccini, C. Bats in a Mediterranean Mountainous Landscape: Does Wind Farm Repowering Induce Changes at Assemblage and Species Level?. Environmental Management 57, 1240–1246 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-016-0686-2

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