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Birds
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Bird Mortality Caused by Power Lines
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Bird Mortality Caused by Power Lines

A special issue of Birds (ISSN 2673-6004).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 8213

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Joana L.V. Bernardino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
Interests: wildlife and infrastructure interactions; impact monitoring and mitigation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Tackling climate change will require a profound transformation of the global energy system, which needs to be based on high shares of renewables. Distribution and transmission overhead power lines will play an important role in the clean energy transition, as they ensure the delivery of electricity produced from renewable sources (typically located in remote areas) to end consumers. However, the predicted expansion and upgrading of the electricity grids raises important challenges, but also opportunities, for biodiversity conservation, particularly for birds, as overhead power lines are a significant source of direct mortality.

This Special Issue will consider original or review articles that highlight advances in our understanding and monitoring practices of bird mortality at power lines, caused by electrocutions or collisions with the overhead wires. Studies on the consequences of bird mortality caused by power lines may include assessments at individual or population levels. We also welcome studies on the development and effectiveness evaluation of strategies to reduce bird mortality at any stage of the mitigation hierarchy (avoidance, minimization, and compensation/offsets). Studies that can increase the understanding of powerline-caused bird mortality and their drivers in understudied regions of the world are particularly welcomed.

Dr. Joana L.V. Bernardino
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Birds is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • collision
  • electrocution
  • transmission lines
  • distribution lines
  • monitoring practices
  • mitigation strategies

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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9 pages, 1551 KiB  
Communication
Epoxy Coating as a Novel Method to Prevent Avian Electrocutions and Electrical Faults on Distribution Pylons with Grounded Steel Crossarms
by Mahmood Kolnegari, Ali Akbar Basiri, Mandana Hazrati, Anaïs Gaunin and James F. Dwyer
Birds 2024, 5(3), 616-624; https://doi.org/10.3390/birds5030041 - 19 Sep 2024
Viewed by 883
Abstract
Electrical faults caused by power escaping electric systems can lead to power outages, equipment damage, and fires. Faults sometimes occur when birds perched on power structures are electrocuted. Distribution power lines supported by concrete and steel pylons are particularly fault-prone because small separations [...] Read more.
Electrical faults caused by power escaping electric systems can lead to power outages, equipment damage, and fires. Faults sometimes occur when birds perched on power structures are electrocuted. Distribution power lines supported by concrete and steel pylons are particularly fault-prone because small separations between conductors and grounded components allow even small birds to inadvertently create faults while being electrocuted. Most conservation solutions focus on covering energized wires and components to prevent contact by birds and, although usually effective when installed correctly, covers can sometimes be dislodged thus becoming ineffective. Glass Flake Epoxy (GFE) is a non-conductive thermoset plastic that can adhere to steel crossarms and not be dislodged. We hypothesized that GFE-coated crossarms might reduce faults (proxies for avian electrocutions), and we conducted laboratory and field trials to evaluate that hypothesis. In the laboratory, we found a 2000 micrometer (μm)-thick layer of GFE coating that created a dielectric strength of 12.30 ± 0.21 kV, which was sufficient to prevent the formation of a phase-to-ground fault on up to 20 kV distribution lines. This should allow birds to perch on metal crossarms without being electrocuted. In field trials, we substituted 24% of a 20 kV distribution pylon’s crossarms with GFE-treated crossarms and found that doing so correlated with a 28% decrease in faults. Although we did not measure avian electrocutions directly, our findings suggest GFE coatings may offer a novel method of reducing avian electrocutions on power lines. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bird Mortality Caused by Power Lines)
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15 pages, 2544 KiB  
Article
Defining Collision Risk: Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor Power Line Collision Sensitivity and Exposure for Proactive Mitigation
by Mattheuns D. Pretorius, Tamsyn L. Galloway-Griesel, Lourens Leeuwner, Michael D. Michael, Kaajial Durgapersad and Kishaylin Chetty
Birds 2023, 4(4), 315-329; https://doi.org/10.3390/birds4040027 - 18 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1600
Abstract
Lesser Flamingos Phoeniconaias minor regularly collide with power lines in South Africa. Attaching light-emitting markers to overhead wires seems to be an effective mitigation measure; however, the cost of these devices is prohibitive of large-scale installation. Spatial predictions about flamingo collision risk are [...] Read more.
Lesser Flamingos Phoeniconaias minor regularly collide with power lines in South Africa. Attaching light-emitting markers to overhead wires seems to be an effective mitigation measure; however, the cost of these devices is prohibitive of large-scale installation. Spatial predictions about flamingo collision risk are thus important for achieving efficient and effective proactive mitigation. In this study, collision risk was defined as a combination of factors related to threat exposure. A habitat suitability index was developed according to changes in surface water occurrence and Chlorophyll-a concentrations, which proved accurate in predicting Lesser Flamingo occurrence. Habitat suitability, and three other species and threat exposure variables, were then used in logistic regression models predicting the occurrence of historic collisions. The most parsimonious model included habitat suitability and flight height. Flamingos were only at risk of collision with power lines when flying lower than 50 m and within 3 km from the water’s edge. High-risk power line sections were thus identified from 3 km buffers around waterbodies ranked according to habitat suitability, which significantly reduced the number of power line spans predicted for proactive marking. While our models indicated that aspects related to exposure were important for predicting flamingo power line collisions, aspects related to sensitivity (e.g., nocturnal behavior) must also guide the choice of mitigation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bird Mortality Caused by Power Lines)
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Review

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13 pages, 1544 KiB  
Review
Vision-Based Design and Deployment Criteria for Power Line Bird Diverters
by Graham R. Martin
Birds 2022, 3(4), 410-422; https://doi.org/10.3390/birds3040028 - 9 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3663
Abstract
The design of bird diverters should be based upon the perception of birds, not the perception of humans, but until now it is human vision that has guided diverter design. Aspects of bird vision pertinent to diverter design are reviewed. These are applied [...] Read more.
The design of bird diverters should be based upon the perception of birds, not the perception of humans, but until now it is human vision that has guided diverter design. Aspects of bird vision pertinent to diverter design are reviewed. These are applied in an example that uses Canada Geese Branta canadensis as a putative worst-case example of a collision-prone species. The proposed design uses an achromatic checkerboard pattern of high contrast whose elements match the low spatial resolution of these birds when they are active under twilight light levels. The detectability of the device will be increased by movement, and this is best achieved with a device that rotates on its own axis driven by the wind. The recommended spacing of diverters along a power line is based upon the maximum width of the bird’s binocular field and the linear distance that it subtends at a distance sufficient to allow a bird to alter its flight path before possible impact. Given the worst-case nature of this example, other bird species should detect and avoid such a device. The basic design can be modified for use with specific target species if sufficient is known about their vision. Field trials of devices based on these design criteria are now required. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bird Mortality Caused by Power Lines)
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