Bats eat insects.
That's a good reason
to like them.
They are a vital part
of our ecosystem.
A conservative estimate
for yearly bat fatalities
from wind turbines ranges
between 1.7 to 3.7 million.
A new study suggests
death numbers may be
4 to 7 times higher due to
carcass search deficiencies.
It is estimated that
North American migratory
bat populations will decline
by 90% over the next 50 years
due to the expanding presence
of wind turbines
(Frick et al., 2017).
As of 2015, about 25%
of North American
bat species
were already considered
vulnerable or endangered
(Hammerson et al., 2017).
A new study suggests
researchers may be
vastly underestimating
wind turbine bat fatalities
due to biased-low carcass
detection practices.
Smallwood and Bell (2020)
report that dogs perform
far better than humans
at locating bat carcasses.
But even dogs miss
3 out of every 4 bats
observed colliding
with wind turbines.
Injured bats may
temporarily recover
enough to fly tens
of meters away from
the collision site, and
scavengers can quickly
collect the dead and
injured bats before
dogs (and humans)
can recover them.
The estimated
1.7 to 3.7 million
bats killed by
U.S. wind turbines
each year (2019),
may be far
from reality,
which is likely
to be 4 to 7 times
higher.
In addition to
the bat destruction,
is the wind turbine
destruction of birds.
The "Green Carnage"
continues at wind farms !