Mitigation of anthropogenic climate change involves deployments of renewable
energy worldwide, including wind farms, which can pose a significant
collision risk to volant animals. Most studies into the collision risk between
species and wind turbines, however, have taken place in industrialized
countries. Potential effects for many locations and species therefore remain
unclear. To redress this gap, we conducted a systematic literature review
of recorded collisions between birds and bats and wind turbines within
developed countries. We related collision rate to species-level traits and turbine
characteristics to quantify the potential vulnerability of 9538 bird and
888 bat species globally. Avian collision rate was affected by migratory strategy,
dispersal distance and habitat associations, and bat collision rates were
influenced by dispersal distance. For birds and bats, larger turbine capacity
(megawatts) increased collision rates; however, deploying a smaller number
of large turbines with greater energy output reduced total collision risk per
unit energy output, although bat mortality increased again with the largest
turbines. Areas with high concentrations of vulnerable species were also
identified, including migration corridors. Our results can therefore guide
wind farm design and location to reduce the risk of large-scale animal mortality.
This is the first quantitative global assessment of the relative collision
vulnerability of species groups with wind turbines, providing valuable guidance
for minimizing potentially serious negative impacts on biodiversity.