Windfarms pose major risk to bats

Donal Hickey on how windfarms affect nature.

WINDFARMS are blamed for the deaths of large numbers of birds, including the threatened hen harrier, that crash into the spinning blades. But, what’s now emerging is that bats are probably more at risk than birds.

Up to now little has been known about the effects of windfarms on bats. Something that has mystified researchers, however, is that bats found dead around turbines had no visible injuries. So, are windfarms killing bats without touching them? It seems they are.