New technologies will protect migratory birds

Every year millions of birds migrate around the planet. For many of them, the journey is forever interrupted at the blades of wind turbines. The Swiss company has developed a radar to help solve this problem.

“This device is capable of recognizing a swarm of mosquitoes at a distance of five kilometers.” Urs Seiffert, head of the Swiss Birdradar project, has no doubts about the potential of this device. True, he is not interested in insects, but in migratory birds that cross the sky over Switzerland twice a year. “We are talking about tens of millions of birds moving in huge flocks or schools. The goal of the project is to avoid future bird collisions with wind turbines. ”

The Birdscan radar monitors a portion of the sky above wind generators (they are also called “wind turbines” or abbreviated “wind turbines”), says W. Seifert. “He is able to distinguish many types of birds. But that’s not what we want. We are more interested in the ability to measure the density of a school of birds.” The Swiss Ornithological Institute from the historic town of Sempach is also involved in this project.