Raptors attracted to wind farms

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Raptors are attracted to wind turbines

Wind turbines offer great perching opportunities for birds of prey. From up there, they have commanding views of open spaces colonized by graminae, which attract prey such as mice, voles, rabbits, partridges, grouse etc. , or of bodies of water where fish are swimming.

First, they perch on still blades:

Altamont Pass: red-tailed hawk perched on top blade.
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Better resolution picture here: http://iberica2000.org/documents/eolica/photos/blade_perching.jpg

Then they perch on nacelles or other parts:

Click on picture to enlarge

Click on picture to enlarge

Better resolution picture here: http://iberica2000.org/documents/eolica/photos/red_tailed_hawk_perched_on_nacelle.jpg

Then they may try to build a nest:

In this case a pair of ospreys succeeded because this turbine at Cape Vincent, NY, was mothballed.
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For better resolution picture, ask save.the.eagles@gmail.com

Then they perch when the blades are moving:

See this video of a turkey vulture:

http://savetheeaglesinternational.org/vultures-killed-videos.html

This perilous perching often ends up in loss of life.

But they also get struck while looking for prey or carrion below the turbines:

See this VIDEO of a griffon vulture on Crete island: http://savetheeaglesinternational.org/vulture-struck-by-wind-turbine.html

 

CONCLUSION: ornithologists hired by wind farm developers are misrepresenting the facts when they say that raptors “avoid” wind farms, or “are displaced” by them, or even sometimes “get used to them”. The truth is that they are ATTRACTED, then KILLED by wind turbines. California’s very large Altamont Pass windfarm, for instance, kills about 1300 raptors a year, of which 116 golden eagles on average – source: “Developing Methods to Reduce Bird Mortality In the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area” (pages 73 & 74, table 3-11,  last column: “adjusted for search detection and scavenging”) – Dr. S.Smallwood et al. (2004). And no, Altamont Pass is no exception. Raptors are being killed by wind farms all over the world.

Would so many be killed if they “avoided” or “were displaced by” or “got used to ” wind turbines?

In another study, Dr. Smallwood noted that raptor flew close to wind turbines more often than they would by chance: “Smallwood and Thelander (2004, 2005) reported that raptors fly disproportionately close to wind turbines, flying within 50 meters of wind turbines between seven and ten times more often than expected by chance. ”  See:   Annex (A) to “Scottish government, European Commission guilty of ecological vandalism”

So did this study of raptors migrating over water: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4054530/Wind-farms-DEADLY-birds-prey-Migrating-raptors-attracted-turbines-potential-landing-spots.html




AS A RESULT, MANY RAPTORS GET STRUCK BY THE BLADES:


Some of the eagles killed by wind turbines (tip of the iceberg)
http://www.iberica2000.org/es/Articulo.asp?Id=3071 – Last updated in 2006

Some of the ospreys killed by wind turbines (tip of the iceberg)
http://savetheeaglesinternational.org/new/843-2.html

Effects on red kites
http://rapaces.lpo.fr/sites/default/files/milan-royal/63/actesmilan150.pdf (pages 96, 97).

MORE: see our main webpage, at www.savetheeaglesinternational.org

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