Short Science Summary: Offshore Wind Farms as Stepping Stones for Non-indigenous Species

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One of the most important effects of offshore wind farms is the unintentional provision of a new habitat which invariably is rapidly colonized by hard substrate species. Turbine foundations provide hard vertical substrates and, depending on the structure and scour protection used, varying degrees of habitat complexity. These novel surfaces span the full water column from the splash zone to the seafloor, often in areas where comparable natural hard surfaces are absent. Non-indigenous species (NIS) are species that did not occur in a particular geographic region, such as the North Sea, prior to a certain date (e.g., the beginning of the 17th century). They consist of species introduced by human activities outside their natural past or present range (introduced species), and species that spread by their own means (range expanding species) due to rising temperatures or other factors. As ocean sprawl in shallow and coastal waters has favored NIS, there is concern that increasing development of offshore wind farms will accelerate this phenomenon. This summary represents a general overview of the research, produced by WREN under IEA Wind. 

The table below contains the literature relevant to this summary document and will continue to be updated as new literature is added to Tethys.

Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Expected occurrence of wildlife in US Atlantic offshore wind areas Brill, D., Cleary, J., Roberts, J., O'Brien, B., Halpin, P. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds, Marine Mammals, Reptiles, Sea Turtles
Offshore Wind Impact on Oceanographic Processes: North Carolina to New York, Volume 1 - RPS Georgas, N., Garavelli, L., Codiga, D., Day, E., Engel, L., Hemery, L., Misa, M., Monim, M., Moghadam, H., Morandi, A., Ilia, A., Speers, J., Tajallibakhsh, T. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Demersal Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
The impacts of human-made structures on larval connectivity in the northern North Sea Barton, B., De Dominicis, M., Woolf, D., Want, A., Bell, M. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Habitat Change Invertebrates
Metagenomic biodiversity assessment within an offshore wind farm Serivichyaswat, P., Scholte, T., Wilms, T., Stranddorf, L., van der Valk, T. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment, Water Quality
South Fork Wind Benthic Monitoring Program: Sediment Profile and Plan View Imaging (SPI/PV), ROV-based Sampling, and Sediment Grab Sampling INSPIRE Environmental Website Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates, Physical Environment
Frequently Asked Questions: Offshore Wind and Whales Whale Communications Committee Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Displacement, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
Exploratory Cross-Scale Characterization of Oceanographic Data Surrounding Offshore Wind Areas Noor, N. Thesis Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
Biodiversity Information of benthic Species at ARtificial structures - BISAR Dannheim, J., Kloss, P., Vanaverbeke, J., Mavraki, N., Zupan, M., Spielmann, V., Degraer, S., Birchenough, S., Janas, U., Sheehan, E., Teschke, K., Gill, A., Hutchison, Z., Carey, D., Rasser, M., Buyse, J., Weide, B., Bittner, O., Causon, P., Krone, R., Faasse, M., Wrede, A., Coolen, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change
This is EPIC: Extensive Periphery for Impact and Control to study seabird habitat loss in and around offshore wind farms combining a peripheral control area and Bayesian statistics Grundlehner, A., Leopold, M., Kersten, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Displacement, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Offshore Wind Impact on Oceanographic Processes: North Carolina to New York - DHI Johnson, T., Simpson, E., Bell, M., van Berkel, J., Petersen, O., Hansen, F., Hernandez, B., Saw, Y., Mortensen, L., Snyder, D., Thomsen, F. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Demersal Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
ScotMER 7th Symposium 2025: Physical Processes Marine Scotland Presentation Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Water Quality
ScotMER 7th Symposium 2025: EcoWind Marine Scotland Presentation Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Outlook on the development of eco-friendly offshore renewable energy technologies Sun, P., Jiang, Z., Chen, Y., Song, X., Pang, Y., Cai, B., Xu, X., Li, Y. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Seabirds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Marine Spatial Planning
Setting a course for research on offshore wind development impacts near Nantucket Shoals Gawarkiewicz, G. Magazine Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Physical Environment, Water Quality
Impact of offshore wind farms on the fauna of the Baltic Sea Cieślewicz, N., Pilarski, K., Pilarska, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals
Zooplankton and offshore wind: Drifters in a sea of uncertainty Saba, G. Magazine Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Physical Environment, Water Quality
The impact of wind farm construction on swimming animals in the South Yellow Sea: An evaluation based on the biodiversity and microplastics He, J., Song, K., Chang, Y., Wang, X., Song, W., Wang, S., Zhang, R., Feng, Z. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Marine Mammals
Diadromous Fish in the Context of Offshore Wind – Review of Current Knowledge & Future Research Honkanen, H., Moore, I., Roger, J., Adams, C., Dodd, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind EMF, Habitat Change, Lighting, Noise Fish, Demersal Fish, Pelagic Fish
Floating Offshore Wind Energy Infrastructure Nielsen, K., Robertson, B., Sierman, J., Sliger, J., Kruse, S., Burright, J., Douville, T., Cooperman, A., Copping, A., Farr, H., Barth, J., Raghukumar, K., Adams, G., Escajeda, E. , Jacobson, A., Kramer, S., Severy, M., Henkel, S., Newton, K., Chapple, T. , Heppell, S. , Heppel, S. , Davis, L., Hazboun, S., Boudet, H. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Changes in Flow, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Physical Environment, Reptiles, Sea Turtles, Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Marine Spatial Planning, Stakeholder Engagement
Marine biodiversity related to establishment of offshore wind turbines: A case study from Kriegers Flak in the western Baltic Sea Dahl, K., Buur, H., Göke, C., Staer, P., Koziol, A., Sapkota, R., Winding, A. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates
Towards holistic, participative and adaptable governance for offshore wind farm decommissioning Jurrius, L., van Hoof, L. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Human Dimensions, Stakeholder Engagement
Large offshore wind farms have minimal direct impacts on air quality Golbazi, M., Archer, C. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Human Dimensions
How should the use of offshore wind farms by birds be approached and should it be encouraged? Henry, S., Bourgeois, K., Cadiou, B., Chabrolle, A., Guillemette, C., Planque, Y., Siblet, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Habitat Change Birds
Acoustic telemetry suggests the lesser spotted dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula stays and uses habitats within a French offshore wind farm Labourgade, P., Couturier, L., Bourjea, J., Woillez, M., Feunteun, E., Reubens, J., Trancart, T. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish
A review of benthic ecological surveying for marine renewable developments in Scottish waters Aquatera Report Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates
Ecological design of scour protection for offshore wind power Junquera Barbazán, P., Sudjada, S. Thesis Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change, Noise Fish, Demersal Fish, Physical Environment
Avoidance & Minimisation of Environmental Impacts from Offshore Wind & Grid Infrastructure Offshore Coalition For Energy & Nature (OCEaN) Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Seabirds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning, Stakeholder Engagement
Life on every stone: Characterizing benthic communities from scour protection layers of offshore wind farms in the southern North Sea Zupan, M., Coolen, J., Mavraki, N., Degraer, S., Moens, T., Kerckhof, F., López, L., Vanaverbeke, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment
NMFS West Coast Offshore Wind Energy Strategic Science Plan National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Seabirds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Fisheries, Legal & Policy, Marine Spatial Planning
Schemes for Assessing Ecosystem Impacts in the Offshore Wind Siting Processes of European Countries and Implications for Korea Ahn, S., Soh, Y., Ryu, J., Ha, J., Cha, Y., Yun, S. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
Options for biodiversity-friendly designs and approaches for offshore wind farms in Ireland BlueWise Marine Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
Commercial Wind Lease Issuance on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf, Offshore Oregon Final Environmental Assessment Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), US Army Corps of Engineers, US Coast Guard, Elk Valley Rancheria Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Reptiles, Sea Turtles, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment
Beneath the blades: Marine wind farms support parts of local biodiversity - a systematic review Knorrn, A., Teder, T., Kaasik, A., Kreitsberg, R. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Fish, Demersal Fish, Invertebrates
A comprehensive review on scour and scour protections for complex bottom-fixed offshore and marine renewable energy foundations Chambel, J., Fazeres-Ferradosa, T., Miranda, F., Bento, A., Taveira-Pinto, F., Lomonaco, P. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment
Realizing the Potential of eDNA Biodiversity Monitoring Tools in the Marine Environment with Application to Offshore Renewable Energy Sepulveda, A., Morrison, C., Hunter, M., Khalil, M. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Reptiles
Environmental DNA for monitoring the impact of offshore wind farms on fish and invertebrate community structures Cornelis, I., De Backer, A., Maes, S., Vanhollebeke, J., Brys, R, Ruttink, T., Hostens, K., Derycke, S. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish, Invertebrates
Assessing environmental impacts of offshore wind farms: lessons learned and recommendations for the future [E3S] Rahman, F., Kumar, P. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Chemicals, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment
Guardians of the seabed: Nature-inclusive design of scour protection in offshore wind farms enhances benthic diversity Kingma, E., ter Hofstede, R., Kardinaal, E., Bakker, R., Bittner, O., van der Weide, B., Coolen, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Environmental impacts from large-scale offshore renewable-energy deployment Ouro, P., Fernandez, R., Armstrong, A., Brooks, B., Burton, R., Folkard, A., Ilić, S., Parkes, B., Schultz, D., Stallard, T., Watson, F. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport
Answering the key stakeholder questions about the impact of offshore wind farms on marine life using hypothesis testing to inform targeted monitoring Cresci, A., Degraer, S., Zhang, G., Dannheim, J., Browman, H. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Human Dimensions, Stakeholder Engagement
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