Data from: Effect of tower base painting on willow ptarmigan collision rates with wind turbines
Data files
Aug 26, 2020 version files 835.54 KB
-
Effect_collisions_base_SI.R
15.82 KB
-
Ptarmigan_carcasses_Smola.csv
819.72 KB
Abstract
1. Birds colliding with turbine rotor blades is a well-known negative consequence of wind-power plants. However, there has been far less attention to the risk of birds colliding with the turbine towers, and how to mitigate this risk. 2. Based on data from the Smøla wind-power plant in Central Norway, it seems highly likely that willow ptarmigan (the only gallinaceous species found on the island) is prone to collide with turbine towers. By employing a BACI-approach, we tested if painting the lower parts of turbine towers black would reduce the collision risk. 3. Overall, there was a 48% reduction in the number of recorded ptarmigan carcasses per search at painted turbines relative to neighbouring control (unpainted) ones, with significant variation both within and between years. 4. Using contrast painting to the turbine towers resulted in significantly reduced number of ptarmigan carcasses found, emphasizing the effectiveness of such a relatively simple mitigation measure.
Methods
This dataset was collected through carcass searches using a trained dog. Searches were performed in the period 2006-2017 with varying search intensities. More details on the search regime can be found in the main document. Each row indicates one search, with or without any birds found. Post-processing of the data, summarizing number of searches and carcasss found per year or season, are scripted in the R script.
Usage notes
The data file (Ptarmigan_carcasses_Smola.csv) contains all data required to run the R script (Effect_collisions_base SI.R) for the analyses in the main document.