Wind Energy Facility
Wind energy facility in the Northeastern United States. An unexpected number of dead bats began appearing beneath industrial-scale wind turbines in North America and Europe during the past 10 years....
Location: USA

Wind Turbines
Wind turbines at certain sites in North America each cause dozens of bat fatalities per year. ...
Location: USA

Wind Turbine
Most modern wind turbines are taller than a 30-story building. Field biologist Apple Snider stands at the base of a turbine in New York for scale....
Location: USA

Wind Turbine Blade
This photo shows one of the three 135-ft blades of a turbine before installation. Although the blades of wind turbines appear to move quite slowly to the human eye, blade tips often move at speeds faster than 100 mph. ...
Location: USA

Hoary Bat
A hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) roosting on the branch of a tree. About half of all bat fatalities documented in North America involve hoary bats, a migratory species that roosts in the foliage of trees....
Location: USA

Hoary Bat Victim
A hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) found dead beneath a wind turbine, an apparent victim of a blade strike or near-contact barotrauma (lung failure from severe and abrupt pressure change; here, caused by the spinning blades). Prior to the problem of bat fatalities at wind turbines, biologists rarely en...
Location: USA

Bats and Wind Energy
USGS biologist Paul Cryan examines the carcass of a hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) found beneath a wind turbine. By examining the casualties, biologists hope to learn more about why migratory bats are so susceptible to wind turbines. ...
Location: USA

Bats and Wind Energy
USGS biologist Paul Cryan. Biologists hope to learn more about the scale and causes of bat fatalities at wind turbines by searching for carcasses of bats beneath turbines and carefully documenting the conditions under which they are found....
Location: USA

Wind Turbine
The species of bats that are most susceptible to wind turbines all roost in trees throughout the year, leading some scientists to speculate that they may be visually mistaking wind turbines for trees in which to roost....
Location: USA

Wind Turbines
Some of the larger wind energy facilities in North America are composed of hundreds of wind turbines dispersed across tens of thousands of acres, like this one in Colorado. ...
Location: USA

Bat with Radio Transmitter
USGS biologist Paul Cryan releases a bat carrying a miniature radio transmitter. Researchers are increasingly turning to high-tech methods to try to learn more about the mysterious lives of bats. ...
Location: USA

Recovery Act Invests $116,000 at Apostle Islands
Secretary Salazar checks out the island’s photovoltaic solar panels. Solar panels are the sole source of electricity for the islands and are used to run the interior of the lighthouse on Michigan Island....
Location: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, WI, USA

Interior Invests $286,000 in Minnesota Valley NWR
Tom Melius, Midwest Regional Director (FWS) and Jeanne Holler, Assistant Refuge Manager, point out new energy retrofitting construction while touring the Minnesota Valley NWR Visitor Center....
Location: Bloomington, MN, USA

Interior Invests $286,000 in Minnesota Valley NWR
Secretary Salazar inspects new geothermal plumbing construction in parking lot of Minnesota Valley. Left to Jeanne Holler, Tom Melius and Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks Tom Strickland look. ...
Location: Bloomington, MN, USA

Solar Energy
Solar panels on public land in BLM California offer a form of renewable energy development....
Location: CA, USA