Bats Flying at High Altitudes

McCracken, Gary F.; Lee, Ya Fu; Gillam, Erin H.; Frick, Winifred F.; Krauel, Jennifer J.

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-54727-1_12

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…If the same relationship between flight altitude and fatalities holds true for bats, then the pattern we observed between turbine height and fatalities of hoary, silver-haired, and big brown bats may reflect these species use of higher altitudes. Collisions of hoary and silver-haired bats with planes support the assertion that they are high-altitude flyers (Peurach 2003;Peurach et al 2009;McCracken et al 2021). Perhaps little brown bats and eastern red bats fly at lower altitudes, spending more time below the rotor swept area of newer turbines that tend to be further from the ground than older turbine models, but at this point, this interpretation is speculation that is not yet supported by quantitative data.…”

Section: Swallows In Late Summermentioning

confidence: 98%

Effects of turbine height and cut-in speed on bat and swallow fatalities at wind energy facilities

Anderson

Jardine

Zimmerling

et al. 2022

FACETS

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Understanding the relationship between the height of wind turbines and wildlife fatalities is important for informing and mitigating wildlife collisions as ever taller and denser arrays of wind turbines are erected across the landscape. We examined relationships between turbine height and fatalities of bats and swallows at 811 turbines in Ontario, Canada, ranging from 119 to 186 m tall. We accounted for cut-in speeds, operational mitigation, and taller turbines projecting carcasses farther from the turbine base than shorter turbines. Fatalities of hoary bats ( Lasiurus cinereus Palisot de Beauvois, 1796), silver-haired bats ( Lasionycteris noctivagans Le Conte, 1831), and big brown bats ( Eptesicus fuscus Palisot de Beauvois, 1796) increased with increased maximum blade height of turbines. In contrast, fatalities of little brown bat ( Myotis lucifugus Le Conte, 1831) and eastern red bat ( Lasiurus borealis Müller, 1776) decreased with increased turbine height. Fatalities of purple martins ( Progne subis Linnaeus, 1758) and tree swallows ( Tachycineta bicolor Vieillot, 1808) were higher at taller turbines than shorter turbines. However, fatalities of cliff swallow ( Petrochelidon pyrrhonota Vieillot, 1817) and barn swallow ( Hirundo rustica Linnaeus, 1758) were not associated with turbine height. Our results suggest that varying flight height among species may be one factor affecting collision risk.

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Section: Swallows In Late Summermentioning

confidence: 98%

Effects of turbine height and cut-in speed on bat and swallow fatalities at wind energy facilities

Anderson

Jardine

Zimmerling

et al. 2022

FACETS

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“…T. brasiliensis is known to forage at high altitudes, with recorded foraging activity on migratory noctuid moths ( Lepidoptera ) occurring as high as 3000 m ( Williams et al , 1973 ). However, T. brasiliensis can also forage near ground and their diverse diet varies seasonally depending on species abundance and availability ( McCracken et al , 2021 ; Ross, 1961 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The genome sequence of Tadarida brasiliensis I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1824 [Molossidae; Tadarida]

Webster,

Smotherman,

Pippel

et al. 2024

Wellcome Open Res

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“…Understanding bird movements can help minimize the potential for strikes, and radar has long been recognized as a tool that can be used to quantify the movements of birds and other volant animals (Eastwood 1967, Gauthreaux 1970, Chapman et al 2011, McCracken et al 2021. Radars emit pulses of electromagnetic energy that travel away from a transmitter until the energy encounters aerial objects and an echo of the energy is reflected back to a receiver, providing information about the bearing, altitude, and speed of objects within a volume of space (Eastwood 1967, Kingsley and Quegan 1999, Stepanian et al 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When can local bird detection radars best complement broad‐scale early‐warning forecasts of risk potential for bird–aircraft strikes as part of an integrated approach to strike mitigation?

Colón

Long

2023

Ecography

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Worldwide, wildlife–aircraft strikes cost more than US$1.2 billion in aircraft damage and downtime and jeopardize the safety of aircrews, passengers, and animals. Radar has long been used to monitor flying animal movements and can be a useful tool for strike mitigation. In the USA, the Avian Hazard Advisory System (AHAS) is an early‐warning system that integrates data from next‐generation weather radar (NEXRAD) weather surveillance radars (WSRs) with historic bird occurrence data to quantify avian activity and forecast the relative bird risk within a ~9.3‐km radius of military and civilian airfields. Bird detection radars (BDRs) with both horizontal‐surveillance and vertical‐scanning components are also available for monitoring local avian activity at airports, but we have little information regarding the congruence of broad‐scale warnings and local avian activity where WSRs and BDRs overlap. We quantified trends in biological activity recorded at hourly intervals by a BDR at an airfield in Texas, USA, and in the most frequently assigned AHAS risk forecasts for that site during the same intervals. We then examined the strength of association between these datasets by season and time of day to determine when information from BDRs might best complement forecasts from the broad‐scale AHAS system. We found a strong overall association between the datasets but weak or moderate agreement during daylight periods, when most strikes occur. NEXRAD WSRs see only limited bird activity near the Earth's surface, where the majority of damaging strikes take place and, not surprisingly, AHAS warnings during our study were best predicted by the BDR at higher altitudes. Our results suggest BDRs might best complement early‐warning systems, like AHAS, as part of integrated strike mitigation plans at airfields with large numbers of hazardous birds flying at low altitudes during daylight hours, especially in late afternoon.

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Bats Flying at High Altitudes

Cited by 8 publications

References 60 publications

Effects of turbine height and cut-in speed on bat and swallow fatalities at wind energy facilities

Effects of turbine height and cut-in speed on bat and swallow fatalities at wind energy facilities

The genome sequence of Tadarida brasiliensis I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1824 [Molossidae; Tadarida]

When can local bird detection radars best complement broad‐scale early‐warning forecasts of risk potential for bird–aircraft strikes as part of an integrated approach to strike mitigation?

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