TY - JOUR
TI - Effectiveness of Search Dogs Compared with Human Observers in Locating Bat Carcasses at Wind-Turbine Sites: A Blinded Randomized Trial
AU - Mathews, F
AU - Swindells, M
AU - Goodhead, R
AU - August, T
AU - Hardman, P
AU - Linton, D
AU - Hosken, D
T2 - Wildlife Society Bulletin
AB - With the expansion of wind-energy generation, there is a growing need to develop accurate and efficient methods to detect bat casualties resulting from turbine collision and barotrauma. We conducted a formal blinded trial comparing the abilities of search dogs and human observers to locate bat carcasses. Dogs located 73% (46/63) of bats, whereas humans found 20% (12/60). We therefore recommend search dogs as an effective means of monitoring bat fatalities, particularly when a high degree of search accuracy is important. This includes surveys for rare species, or cases where searches are limited in extent or duration, because the application of correction factors is problematic where very few or no casualties are found. The dogs averaged 40 min to complete a survey, which was 
DA - 2013/03//
PY - 2013
VL - 37
IS - 1
SP - 34
EP - 40
UR - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wsb.256/abstract
DO - 10.1002/wsb.256
LA - English
KW - Wind Energy
KW - Land-Based Wind
KW - Collision
KW - Bats
ER -