Hare deaths at Dublin Airport studied in bid to reduce 'runway roadkill'

The number of wildlife-aircraft collisions are increasing by up to 68% annually in some countries, and has caused damage that has cost in excess of $103m in the United States alone over a 30-year period, a study found. File picture: Stephen McCarthy / Sportsfile

Researchers have identified the times of the day when hares are more likely to be struck by aircraft at Dublin Airport — and believe their findings may help reduce costly "runway roadkill" incidences around the world.

A study led by Samantha Ball, an Irish Research Council scholar at the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences (Bees) at UCC, used motion-activated camera traps to collect activity data on the hare population inhabiting the airfield at Dublin Airport, and used the data to identify when hare strikes, or wildlife-aircraft collisions, were more likely to occur.