Another glimpse of this ongoing slaughter - A thousand dead birds per North Sea Wind turbine?

Bird collisions at an offshore platform in the North Sea

Ommo Hüppop, Kathrin Hüppop, Jochen Dierschke & Reinhold Hill

Pages 73-82 | Received 10 Apr 2015, Accepted 31 Aug 2015, Published online: 15 Feb 2016

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• http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00063657.2015.1134440

Abstract

Capsule Collisions with offshore structures in the North Sea could account for the mortality of hundreds of thousands of nocturnally migrating birds.

Aims To assess, for the first time, the circumstances of mass fatalities at an offshore structure, including the species involved, their numbers, ages, body conditions and injuries.

Methods At an unmanned tall offshore research platform in the southeastern North Sea, bird corpses were collected on 160 visiting days from October 2003 to December 2007. Corpses were identified to species and kinds of injury, ages, and fat and muscle scores were determined. Nocturnal bird calls were recorded, identified to species and quantified. Local and large-scale weather parameters were also considered.

Results A total of 767 birds of 34 species, mainly thrushes, European Starlings and other passerines, were found at 45 visits. Most carcasses were in good body condition and young birds were not more affected than adults. Three quarters of 563 examined individuals had collision induced injuries. Birds in poor body condition were less likely to be collision victims than those in good condition. Mass collision events at the illuminated offshore structure coincided with increasingly adverse weather conditions and an increasing call intensity of nocturnal birds.

Conclusions Assuming an average of 150 dead birds per year at this single offshore structure and additionally assuming that a considerable proportion of the corpses were not found, we estimate that mortality at the 1000 + human structures in the North Sea could reach hundreds of thousands of birds. Since offshore industrialization will progress and collision numbers at offshore turbines will consequently increase considerably, we recommend reinforced measures to reduce bird strikes at offshore structures, especially in the light of substantial declines in some migrant species.

It is founded on 4 pilings with a 256 m2 working deck 20 m above sea level (a.s.l.), and has an  81 m lattice tower in its southern corner and a 164 m2 helicopter deck at 25 m a.s.l. (Fischer 2006). Modelling carcass

dispersal after collision with the tall lattice tower of

FINO 1 showed that up to 90% of carcasses are likely to be missed, depending on wind direction and speed (own data). Here, only those events that coincided with, or were followed by, moderate winds could be categorized as ‘mass collisions events’. Other events,when many corpses might have been blown into the sea, may have been missed.

My additional notes.....                                                             

This study did provide some important carcass wind drift information that has been ignored by wind industry research for 40 years.  Keep in mind that besides wind drift, turbine blade strike collisions launch carcasses great distances beyond this industry's tiny search areas.                                             

A bird has at least a 500 times greater chance of hitting one of these turbines at this location than to run into this tower and platform. With honest research, not hidden by government, we are could be looking at a thousand plus birds per turbine at this location.