Greater impacts of wind farms on bird populations during construction than subsequent operation: results of a multi‐site and multi‐species analysis

Abstract

Summary1. There has been a rapid increase in the development of renewable energy because of the need to combat climate change. One of the most widely used technologies has been onshore wind farms. These have the potential to affect birds through disturbance or collision, but the extent to which such developments cause general population declines, and therefore are of wider conservation concern, remains largely untested.2. Monitoring data from wind farms located on unenclosed upland habitats in the UK were collated to test whether breeding densities of upland birds were reduced as a result of wind farm construction or during wind farm operation.3. Data were available for ten species although none were raptors. Red grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus, snipe Gallinago gallinago and curlew Numenius arquata densities all declined on wind farms during construction. Red grouse densities recovered after construction, but snipe and curlew densities did not. Post‐construction curlew densities on wind farms were also significantly lower than reference sites. Conversely, densities of skylark Alauda arvensis and stonechat Saxicola torquata increased on wind farms during construction.4. There was little evidence for consistent post‐construction population declines in any species, suggesting for the first time that wind farm construction can have greater impacts upon birds than wind farm operation.5. The impacts of wind farms were largely unaffected by technical specifications (turbine height, number or total generating power) and therefore are widely applicable.6. Synthesis and applications. This study confirms that regulatory authorities and developers should particularly consider the likely impacts of wind farms on large waders. Greater weight should be given to the effects of construction on wildlife in impact assessments than at present. Mitigation measures during construction, including restricting construction activity to non‐breeding periods, should be considered and tested as a means to reduce these negative effects.