GOING SOUTH
WINGS OVER AMERICA
During migration , many shorebirds opt to hug the United States ’ Atlantic coastline , which is rich with productive ecosystems , but densely-populated with humans . Others prefer a direct oceanic crossing , from Labrador and Nova Scotia to South America via the eastern Caribbean islands . Neither route comes without peril ...
UNITED STATES
WHERE 3 The Florida Everglades BIRDLIFE PARTNER 3 Audubon Society
Photo Jayne Romrodphoto / Shutterstock
WHAT ’ S HAPPENING ? These vast tropical wetlands are an important refuelling spot for migratory waterfowl and shorebirds , who arrive in huge numbers to feast on the Everglades ’ invertebrates . But this once-plentiful food supply is gradually drying up as drainage and development is , to paraphrase a popular line from US politics , “ draining the swamp ”.
WHAT ARE WE DOING ? Our US Partner Audubon is the only conservation organisation working throughout the Everglades . Through tireless policy and advocacy work , Audubon of Florida was instrumental in the formation of the Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area . They have also helped shape federal and state policies for projects that have improved freshwater flow to Everglades National Park , and restore 20 miles of the Kissimmee River — and birds , such as Wood Stork Mycteria americana , have shown evidence of rebounding accordingly .
BAHAMAS
WHERE 3 Coastal areas across the Bahamas BIRDLIFE PARTNER 3 Bahamas National Trust
Photo Dennis Tokarzewski / Shutterstock
WHAT ’ S HAPPENING ? These heavenly islands have become hell for migratory birds : entire beaches are being lost to development and invasive plants are taking over entire habitats , transforming the landscape and reducing the food available for arriving shorebirds . While many areas are protected on paper , many are being left unmanaged and become unsuitable as stopover sites .
WHAT ARE WE DOING ? The Bahamas National Trust safeguards the country ’ s National Parks , identifies vital areas for migratory birds , gets them protected and manages any threats . They back the removal of invasive plants , such as the Australian pine tree , which colonise beach habitats , shading out natural vegetation and changing the soil chemistry .
GOING SOUTH
THE POWER
TO PROTECT
How new techniques and an international Task Force are helping make
renewable energy projects more bird-friendly than ever before
Ian Evenden
M
igrating birds get a lot of interference
from human activity, and it’s unfortunate
that some of it comes from our attempts to be
more environmentally friendly.
The killing of birds by wind turbines and other
clean energy equipment may sound like a
canard trotted out by those who oppose the
proliferation of renewable generation, but the
truth is that some birds, especially birds of prey,
can find themselves in danger as they pass our
installations.
Associated Press figures have the number of
birds killed by turbines in the United States alone
at half a million a year, and bats are equally at
risk, as the spinning blades — the tips of which
can be travelling at almost 200 mph — can
cause barotrauma, disorientation from changes
in air pressure. It’s not just turbines that are at
fault, however: in Sudan, thousands of Egyptian
Vulture Neophron percnopterus, an Endangered
species, were electrocuted by a power line
26
Wind turbine,
Lorraine, France.
Photo Ppictures/Shutterstock
0
ASSOCIATED PRESS
HAVE THE NUMBER
OF BIRDS KILLED BY
TURBINES IN THE
USA ALONE AT HALF
A MILLION A YEAR
as they tried to use it as a perch. The line was
turned off in 2014 after a successful campaign
involving BirdLife Partners in the region.
Often, the problem is in the location of energy
infrastructure. A badly planned instalment can
result in collisions, displace birds from preferred
habitats, or block migratory routes. Power out-
ages caused by birds are bad for business, and
are of course unpopular among local commu-
nities. At a smaller level, turbines and powerlines
can damage individual sites that are important
for a species, or break them into fragments mak-
ing it difficult for large flocks to stay together.
Some countries’ planning laws require bat and
bird assessments as part of an application for
new energy developments, but this isn’t the case
in all parts of the world.
These problems were recognised at the 11 th
meeting of the United Nations’ Convention on
the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild
Animals (CMS) in 2014, with the adoption of a
BIRDLIFE • SEPTEMBER 2017
resolution that convened “a multi-stakeholder
Task Force on Reconciling Selected Energy Sec-
tor Developments with Migratory Species Con-
servation.” Known as the Energy Task Force, this
group supports the implementation of good
practice guidelines, makes recommendations,
and develops tools and guidance to avoid neg-
ative effects on migratory species from energy
sector developments.
The Task Force currently spans Africa, Europe
and the Middle East, and eventually plans to
go global. “The strength of the Task Force is its
diversity”, says Task Force Coordinator, BirdLife’s
Edward Perry. “The Task Force provides a plat-
form where environment and energy minis-
tries, conservation organisations, international
financial institutions, and the energy sector are
able to collaborate to identify, share and scale
up pragmatic solutions for sustainable energy
development.”
“It’s an international problem, so as an interna-
tional organisation, BirdLife is really well placed
to tackle the problem”, says Katja Garson, from
BirdLife’s Global Policy Team. “Our global net-
work of Partners allows us to work across entire
flyways to reduce the cumulative impacts of
energy instalments on vultures and other migra-
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