Bats flying through a Y-maze are visually attracted to wind turbine surfaces

Abstract

Wind energy’s rapid expansion has led to unintended consequences for wildlife, with migratory bats among the species most at risk. The behavioural mechanisms underlying collisions remain poorly understood, but one hypothesis is that bats are attracted to wind turbine structures. Vision is important to bat orientation and obstacle avoidance, yet it has been relatively understudied in the context of bat–turbine interactions. We hypothesize that light reflected off turbine surfaces could attract bats, acting as a sensory pollutant that may increase collision risk. To test whether reflective turbine surfaces elicit attraction, we flew 242 Lasiurus cinereusand 154 Lasionycteris noctivagansthrough Y-maze assays. Bats were at least twice as likely to fly towards white turbine blade sections compared to less reflective black ones. This attraction intensified when the alternative exit was a dark, empty flyway, with 74% of L. cinereusand 97% of L. noctivagansflying towards the white turbine blade. These findings provide evidence that visual sensory pollutants could underlie bat–turbine interactions, and if so, wind turbines could be ecological traps.

Citation

Jonasson, Kristin A.; Corcoran, Aaron J.; Dempsey, Laura; Weller, Theodore J.; Clerc, Jeff. 2025. Bats flying through a Y-maze are visually attracted to wind turbine surfaces. Biology Letters. 21(8): 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2025.0242.