Collision

Direct contact between an animal and a device component.

Any part of a renewable energy device that moves has the potential to have a deleterious effect on both resident and migratory organisms. Collisions between animals and tidal or wind turbine blades could result in injury or death, either by direct contact with the device or by pressure changes created around the moving parts. The probability of a collision with a blade may vary based on the rotational or mechanical speed of the moving parts, the presence and density of animals in the area, the time of day, weather conditions, and the ability of animals to sense and evade the device. Carcasses found around land-based wind turbines provide an estimate of bird and bat fatalities, while it is much more difficult to estimate the effect of collisions with offshore wind turbines. To date there have been no observed collisions of marine mammals or diving seabirds with tidal turbines. Wave energy devices also have moving parts such as heave plates, flaps, and other large heavy components that could potentially cause harm, although the likelihood is thought to be extremely small. Collisions resulting in injury and death of individual animals with moving parts of devices become particularly important if the loss of those individuals affect the stability and sustainability of the population in the area.

For more information relevant to marine energy, check out the Collision Risk Short Science Summary produced by OES-Environmental.

For more information relevant to offshore wind energy, check out the Bat and Bird Interactions with Offshore Wind Energy research brief produced by SEER.

Marine and Wind Energy Environmental Documents

Tethys is a knowledge hub that contains documents on the environmental effects of wind and marine energy. The table below contains all of the documents in the Tethys Knowledge Base associated with Collision.

Total: 1629

Searches title and abstract.
Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Frequently Asked Questions: Offshore Wind and Birds Bird Communications Specialist Committee Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds
Bat Visual Systems and Wind Energy Clerc, J., Dempsey, L., ECO Wind Summary Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Attraction, Collision, Lighting Bats
Progressing Tidal Energy Through Organized Data Approaches Copping, A., Hemery, L., Garavelli, L. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Reptiles, Sea Turtles
Implications of surveyor accuracy in bird flight height estimation for wind farm collision risk assessment Largey, N., Edwards, H., Fernandez-Bellon, D. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds
Estimating the traffic rates of bats migrating across the North and Baltic Seas to develop efficient mitigation measures at offshore wind energy facilities Seebens-Hoyer, A., Bach, L., Pommeranz, H. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision Bats
The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Offshore Energy and Environmental Research Ryu, S., Dempsey, L., Ampela, K. Summary Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise, Vessel Strike Bats, Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Reptiles, Sea Turtles, Human Dimensions
Song flight and 3D thermal detection provide evidence for bat attraction to wind turbines in Central Europe Nagy, M., Hochradel, K., Haushalter, C. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Assessing vertical stratification of bats and nocturnal insects to infer potential collision risk at wind turbines in central Thailand Srilopan, S., Krauel, J., Srilopan, K. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats, Birds
Movement Models to Predict Low-Altitude Flight of Soaring Birds Using Look-Ahead Environmental Factors Sandhu, R., Tripp, C., Quon, E. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds, Raptors
Review of Aberdeen Bay Collision Monitoring Data Cook, A. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision Birds
Mapping avian sensitivity to support onshore wind energy development and bird conservation in two European countries Biasotto, L., Serratosa, J., Clark, B. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds
Coexistence between migratory birds and wind energy production: The Gotthard wind park (Switzerland) as a case study Tettamanti, F. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds
Establishing baselines for echolocating bat activity at wind farms in mainland Southeast Asia Furey, N., Tu, V., Hitch, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Evaluation of the Impact of Environmentally Driven Curtailment Regulations on Wind Farm Energy Production Gonzalez, J., Rodríguez, A., Expósito, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Hierarchical mixture models and high-resolution monitoring data can inform siting and operational strategies to mitigate bat fatalities at wind turbines Labuzzetta, C., Johnson, A., Andress, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Evaluating the Risk of Collision of Seals Swimming Within Metres of Operating Tidal Turbines Montabaranom, J., Gillespie, D., Sparling, C. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision Marine Mammals, Pinnipeds
A global decision framework for reducing bat fatalities at wind energy facilities Frick, W., Whitby, M., Wilson, D. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision Bats
Long-Term Decline in Bird Collisions at Operational Wind Farms: Evidence from Systematic Monitoring to Support Sustainable Wind Energy Development (2010–2024) Yordanov, N., Zehtindjiev, P., Whitfield, D. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds
Bird and bat mortality at wind farms in South America: Lessons from monitoring and mitigation practices in Chile Santander, F., Morant, J., Perez-Garcia, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats, Birds
Observations of marine animal interactions with a small tidal turbine Cotter, E., Bassett, C., Murphy, P. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Avoidance, Collision Seabirds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Pinnipeds
10 Things to consider before approving another offshore wind farm: A case study for Highland, Scotland Goddijn-Murphy, L. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Collision, Habitat Change, Lighting, Noise Human Dimensions
Assessment of seabird vulnerability to offshore wind farms in China Cheng, C., Yao, W., He, Y. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Displacement Birds, Seabirds
Environmental Effects Monitoring Program Annual Report 2025 Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE) Report Marine Energy, Tidal Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Noise Birds, Seabirds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals
The responsibility of Western European coastal states for the conservation of two emblematic migratory seabirds in the context of offshore wind farms Bernard, A., Courbin, N., Tornos, J. Journal Article Collision, Displacement Birds, Seabirds
German Bird Study Finds 99% Avoid Turbines, SunZia Progress Hall, A., Barnes, R., Saxum, J. Podcast Wind Energy Collision Birds
High-resolution multi-sensor technology reveals low collision risk to seabirds in offshore wind farms Skov, H., Tjørnløv, R., Armitage, D. Journal Article Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds, Seabirds
System Dynamics And Performance Prediction Of A Wind-Powered Acoustic Bird Deterrent System Ufuouma, O., Ekenna, E., Maxwell, O. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds
Summary report of sensitivity analysis (WP2): AssESs - Assessing the extent and significance of uncertainty in offshore wind assessments Butler, A., Matthiopoulos, J., Lorenzo-Arribas, A. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Recommendations and Roadmap (WP4): AssESs - Assessing the extent and significance of uncertainty in offshore wind assessments Butler, A., Lorenzo-Arribas, A., Hague, A. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds, Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Stakeholder Engagement
Large-scale mapping of nocturnal bird migration to accelerate a nature-inclusive energy transition Hoekstra, B., Kranstauber, B., Bradaric, M. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision Birds
Uncertainty and approaches to evaluating uncertainty (WP1): AssESs - Assessing the extent and significance of uncertainty in offshore wind assessments Furness, R.W., Searle, K., Jones, E. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Impacts on birds from offshore wind farms in Australia: An ecological risk assessment Reid, K., Baker, G.B. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds
Review of methods used to calculate scale of artificial nesting structures proposed as a compensation measure for Kittiwake mortality at offshore wind farms Rhoades, J., Johnston, D.T., Humphreys, E.M. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision Birds, Seabirds
All tide up: addressing the regulatory and environmental barriers affecting tidal energy development in British Columbia Kelsey, A. Thesis Marine Energy, Tidal Collision, EMF, Noise Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Social & Economic Data, Stakeholder Engagement
ProcBe Annual Report No.2: Year 2 The Crown Estate Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision Birds, Seabirds
Testing a bat fatality detection system at wind turbines Weaver, S., Ritter, J., Commiskey, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Impacts of offshore wind farms on migratory bats in British waters Hooker, J., Lintott, P., Boughey, K. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Lighting Bats
The collision risk of migrating birds at wind farms: Final report VolZug project Liedtke, J., Bruneaux, M., Girndt, A. Report Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Lighting Birds
New frontiers in wind-wildlife monitoring systems Dempsey, L., Clerc, J., Hein, C. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision, Displacement Bats, Birds
Overview of the potential ecological impacts of three offshore locations for wind farms in Aotearoa New Zealand McKinlay, B., van Helden, A., Taylor, G. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Noise, Vessel Strike Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Reptiles, Sea Turtles
Displaying 1 - 40 of 1629 results