The Renewable Energy Wildlife Research Fund (REWRF, the Fund) supports priority research projects that expand the understanding of challenges and potential solutions for solar/wind-wildlife interactions.
A summary of all active and completed projects is provided below. Please reach out to fund@rewi.org with any questions about the REWRF project portfolio.
All project study designs and results undergo independent expert review and are published as peer-reviewed journal articles or as REWI technical reports.
Active Research Projects
Active Wind Projects
Validating Optimized Smart Curtailment for Risk Reduction to Bats
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Active
Project Summary
Started 2024; This project is an attempt to design and implement optimized smart curtailment (OSC) algorithms using site-specific activity and environmental data at three wind energy facilities over two years using a combination of existing and new thermal camera data, acoustic data, or both.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Using the Passage of Weather Fronts to Predict Hoary Bat Mortality
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Active
Project Summary
Started 2021; The objective of this study is to understand if hoary bat mortality in Iowa can be predicted by the passage of regional weather systems. Previous REWRF-sponsored research by WEST suggested that a predictive based on the passage of regional weather systems and mortality information from two wind farms in Illinois and Indiana could reduce the number of nights that blanket curtailment would have been required. This project explores whether a similar modeling approach could be used to predict mortality in a different geographic region.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Lek Persistence of Lesser Prairie Chickens in the Vicinity of Wind Energy Infrastructure
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Active
Project Summary
Started 2022; The objective of this study is to understand how lesser prairie chickens (LEPC) interact with wind energy facilities and to the long-term presence of this infrastructure. The results of this study may inform future monitoring efforts.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Reassessing Bat Collision Risk Using Acoustic Exposure
Stantec
Active
Project Summary
Started 2021; This study considers exposed bat activity as an alternative metric for quantifying temporal, seasonal, and spatial patterns in bat activity as related to implementing and evaluating curtailment strategies.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Spatiotemporal Patterns in Sex Ratios of Bat Fatalities at Wind Energy Facilities in the United States
Bowman Consulting
Active
Project Summary
Started 2021; This study explores regional and temporal differences in the sex ratios of bat carcasses from seven species found at wind turbines from 10 states across the US.
Results & Publications
- Published Manuscript: Understanding fatality patterns and sex ratios of Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) at wind energy facilities in western California and Texas (Dec. 2023)
- Manuscript 2 in progress
Insect Feeding as a Driver of Bat Fatality Risk
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Active
Project Summary
Started 2022; This is a literature review to collate the scientific knowledge related to bat diets and emergence models of insects prominent in bat diets, with an eye toward potential future modeling efforts that could inform smart curtailment strategies.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Validating a Bat Fatality Detection System
Bowman Consulting, Wildlife Imaging Systems
Active
Project Summary
Started 2022; Small-scale field study to evaluate whether a newly developed bat fatality detection system can effectively detect bat fatalities including the time of collision and approximate location of carcasses, with potential future applications to assist in fatality monitoring or development of smart curtailment strategies.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Effects of Painting Wind Turbine Blades on Fatality Rates of Flying Animals
PacifiCorp, REWI, USGS, NextEra Energy, Invenergy, USFWS, Oregon State University, US DOE
Active
Project Summary
Started 2024; The primary goal of this study is to detect whether there is an effect of painting a single turbine blade black on fatality rates of eagles, other birds, and bats.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Active Solar Projects
Ecological Value of PV Solar
Tetra Tech, University of Arkansas, REWI
Active
Project Summary
Started in 2024; This project utilizes 16 different solar facilities across 4 geographic regions to document baseline data for onsite biodiversity and uses community occupancy modeling to explore the site and landscape factors that affect those biodiversity outcomes.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Wildlife Abundance and Use of Utility-Scale Solar Facilities in Agricultural Environments
ECT
Active
Project Summary
Started in 2022; This study evaluates bird abundance and use of solar facilities in an agricultural environment.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Soil Health Impacts of PV Installation and Agri-Voltaic Practice on Agricultural Land
Shippensburg University
Active
Project Summary
Started in 2022; This study explores the effects of land conversion from agriculture to solar energy development on soil health and structure.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Greater Sage-Grouse Use of a Solar Energy Facility in Southwest Wyoming
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Active
Project Summary
Started in 2022; This study investigates how greater sage-grouse use a landscape altered by solar energy development.
Results & Publications
No publications yet for this study.
Completed Research Projects
Effect of Turbine Size on Bird and Bat Fatality Rates
Tetra Tech
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2024; In light of the development of larger wind turbines, this study explores the effect of turbine size on fatality rates of hoary bats, horned larks, and red-tailed hawks.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary: Influence of Turbine Size Parameters on Collision-Based Bird and Bat Mortality (February 2024)
- Published Manuscript: Does size matter? Investigation of the effect of wind turbine size on bird and bat mortality (March 2024)
Incidental Carcass Detection by Staff at Operating Wind Facilities
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2023; This study evaluates the ability of trained operations and maintenance (O&M) staff to detect eagle carcasses while performing their typical duties.
Results & Publications
- Published Manuscript: Incidental eagle carcass detection can contribute to fatality estimation at operating wind energy facilities (November 2023)
Refining the informed curtailment eagle collision minimization strategy using IdentiFlight
Peregrine Fund
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2023; This study explores eagle flight behavior near wind turbines to help refine IdentiFlight curtailment capabilities.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary: Flight Characteristics Forecast Entry By Eagles Into Rotor-Swept Zones of Wind Turbines (July 2022)
- Published Manuscript: Eagles enter rotor-swept zones of wind turbines at rates that vary per turbine (July 2021)
- Published Manuscript: Flight characteristics forecast entry by eagles into rotor swept zones of wind turbines (May 2022)
- Published Manuscript: Variation in flight characteristics associated with entry by eagles into rotor-swept zones of wind turbines (August 2023)
Raptor Carcass Persistence Study
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2023; This study quantifies the difference in carcass persistence between game birds and raptors in post-construction monitoring.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary: Game Bird Carcasses Are Less Persistent Than Raptor Carcasses, But Can Predict Raptor Persistence Dynamics (April 2023)
- Published Manuscript: Game bird carcasses are less persistent than raptor carcasses, but can predict raptor persistence dynamics (January 2023)
Assessing the Efficacy of the Detection and Active Response Curtailment (DARC) Technology
Natural Power
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2023; REWRF contributed matching funds to this DOE-funded study. This project tests the efficacy of a smart curtailment system for bats and aims to address operational concerns that are barriers for implementation.
Results & Publications
- U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Report: Bat Smart Curtailment: Efficacy and Operational Testing (September 2023)
Lesser Prairie Chicken Response to a Wind Energy Development
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2023; This is a multi-year telemetry study of lesser prairie chicken activity near a wind energy development.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary & Technical Report: Placement of Wind Energy Infrastructure Matters: A Quantitative Study Evaluating Response of Lesser Prairie Chicken to a Wind Energy Facility (April 2020)
- Published Manuscript: Lesser prairie-chicken habitat selection and survival relative to a wind energy facility located in a fragmented landscape (May 2023)
BatCast: Assessment of Project-Specific and Regionally Available Data for Development of a Smart Curtailment Algorithm
Cornell Ornithology Lab
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2021; This study explores the role of regional-scale weather variables in predicting bat mortality and bat acoustic activity, with the potential to inform curtailment strategies.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary & Technical Report: The Role of Regional-Scale Weather Variables in Predicting Bat Mortalist and Bat Acoustic Activity: Potential for Use in the Development of Smart Curtailment Algorithms (July 2021)
Effectiveness of Curtailment Regimes in Reducing Fatalities
Biodiversity Research Institute
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2021; Meta-analysis to assess the effectiveness of curtailment regimes on reducing fatalities in migratory tree bat species.
Results & Publications
- Published Manuscript: A review of the effectiveness of operational curtailment for reducing bat fatalities at terrestrial wind farms in North America (November 2021)
Bat Activity Rates Correlated with Fatality Rates
Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc. (WEST)
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2020; This study explores the relationship between pre-construction bat acoustic data with post-construction fatality rates.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary: Bat Activity and Fatality Rates (September 2020)
- Published Manuscript: Bat Activity Rates do not Predict Bat Fatality Rates at Wind Energy Facilities (September 2020)
Landscape Factors Associated with Fatalities of Migratory Tree-Roosting Bats at Wind Energy Facilities
DNV GL
Completed
Project Summary
Completed in 2020; This study uses bat fatality data from the American Wind Wildlife Information Center (AWWIC) to explore the relationships between landscape-level characteristics and fatality rates of migratory tree bats.
Results & Publications
- REWI Results Summary & Technical Report: Landscape Factors Associated with Fatalities of Migratory Tree-Roosting Bats at Wind Energy Facilities: An Initial Assessment (April 2020)