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Comparing Field Methods Used to Determine Bird and Bat Fatalities

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Biodiversity and Wind Farms in Portugal

Abstract

Wind energy production across the globe has grown over the years and Portugal is no exception. Like other forms of energy production, wind energy causes ecological impacts and these impacts are a matter of major concern. One of the impacts caused by operating wind farms is bird and bat casualties due to collision with the wind turbines. Since real mortality is very difficult to determine, due to the impossibility of detecting all carcasses and the probability of carcass disappearance before being detected, field methods for collecting data and estimating mortality have been implemented. Regular searches around wind turbines are implemented to detect carcasses. The protocol of searches must define the size of the searched area, the search method, the duration and frequency of the searches according to guidelines and the objectives of each study. To correct the observed mortality and estimate real mortality, correction factors, such as the probability of carcass persistence or the carcass detection rate, must be assessed by field trials. For Portugal, a search area of 5 m more than blade length and random walk or zig-zag methods resulted in a cost-effective way to collect carcasses. A frequency of 1–3 days is recommended in order to reduce the bias of mortality estimates. If a considerable number of removal trials had to be carried out, camera-trapping was revealed to be a cost-effective method. Otherwise, a carefully planned traditional method also obtained accurate estimates. For detection trials , the use of models is recommended and the number of models and the design should be adapted to homogeneity or heterogeneity of vegetation cover.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bioinsight, Odivelas, Portugal

    João Paula, Margarida Augusto, Tiago Neves, Paulo Cardoso & Miguel Mascarenhas

  2. Eco-Ethology Research Unit, ISPA, Lisbon, Portugal

    Regina Bispo

  3. Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Regina Bispo

Authors
  1. João Paula
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  2. Margarida Augusto
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  3. Tiago Neves
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  4. Regina Bispo
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  5. Paulo Cardoso
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  6. Miguel Mascarenhas
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Correspondence to João Paula .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Bioinsight, Odivelas, Grande Lisboa, Portugal

    Miguel Mascarenhas

  2. cE3c—Centro de Ecologia, Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Grande Lisboa, Portugal

    Ana Teresa Marques

  3. Bioinsight, Cape Town, South Africa

    Ricardo Ramalho

  4. Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal (CIISA), Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal

    Dulce Santos

  5. CIBIO-InBIO, Department of Biology—Pole of Mitra, University of Évora, Évora, Alto Alentejo, Portugal

    Joana Bernardino

  6. Department of Biology—Group of Adaptation Biology and Ecological Processes, University of Aveiro—CESAM, Aveiro, Baixo Vouga, Portugal

    Carlos Fonseca

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Paula, J., Augusto, M., Neves, T., Bispo, R., Cardoso, P., Mascarenhas, M. (2018). Comparing Field Methods Used to Determine Bird and Bat Fatalities. In: Mascarenhas, M., Marques, A., Ramalho, R., Santos, D., Bernardino, J., Fonseca, C. (eds) Biodiversity and Wind Farms in Portugal. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60351-3_6

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