Assessment of bat and avian mortality at a pilot wind turbine at Coega, Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa. (Special Issue: Impacts of wind energy developments on wildlife: a southern hemisphere perspective.)

摘要

A recent push for wind energy development in South Africa has led to bat and avifaunal monitoring programs throughout the country. During the course of one year, three inspections per week (total 154 inspections) were made for evidence of bat and bird casualties at a pilot wind turbine in the Coega Industrial Development Zone, Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa. We recorded 17 bat fatalities and one live but injured bat was collected. Two bat species were involved, Cape serotine (Neoromicia capensis) and Egyptian free-tailed bat (Tadarida aegyptiaca). Of the 18 casualties, 15 were recorded mid-December to mid-March. One bird, a little swift (Apus affinis), was hit by a rotor blade. This is the first study to document bat and bird mortalities over the period of a year at a wind turbine in sub-Saharan Africa.