Chiro-EolHab

Impacts of wind energy on habitat use by bats over time and across the landscape: implications for planning and impact prediction.

The Chiro-EolHab project aims to assess the role of landscape in the effects of wind energy on habitat use by bats, and to evaluate the temporal dynamics of these effects both at the seasonal scale (parturition period versus migration period) and at the multi-year scale (possible habituation or, conversely, progressive degradation of habitat use in impacted areas).

 

Indeed, it is now essential to be able to predict what the impacts of a wind farm on biodiversity will be throughout its entire operational lifespan. The impacts of wind turbines on bats are twofold in nature: habitat loss and/or reduced habitat use, as well as mortality through collisions.

Both of these impacts can be reduced if we are able to understand in which landscape contexts bats avoid wind turbines or are attracted to them, and how these behavioural responses evolve over time.

 

The project therefore aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the potential impacts of a wind farm on bats over time and across space, in order to offer guidance for wind energy planning in France and internationally.