Cookie use on MRCVSonline
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive all cookies.
Accept Policy
Change cookie settings
EmailIphone Application    Posted: 2015-05-05
If you would like to forward this story on to a friend, simply fill in the form below and click send.
Your friend's email:
Your email:
Your name:
 
 
Send Cancel

Bird-aircraft collisions on the rise
flying birds
Bird-aircraft collisions occur most often in the first 100 metres from the ground.
Researchers call for airspace reserves to protect wildlife

Collisions between flying animals and aircraft, power lines and wind farms are rising, according to the results of a new study. Researchers are calling for better airspace management to protect wildlife.

As airspace is increasingly used for transportation, energy generation and surveillance, conflict with animals is on the rise.

Such conflict most often occurs within the first 100 metres from the ground, according to researchers from the University of Swansea. Human activity is most concentrated here and it is where most flying animals operate.

It is also the most likely place for bird-aircraft collisions, which have resulted in the deaths of over 200 people and damage to thousands of aircraft. It costs the US alone $900 million every year.

Crowded airspace also disrupts airflow, affecting bird distribution and habitat. Disturbances to aerial micro-organisms such as bacteria and algae also affects cloud chemistry and climate.

Drones are also thought to cause stress and other physiological reactions in some bird species when they fly close to nests. However, researchers say this is a new field of study and only one research project has studied the effects of drones on birds.

Further study of bird movements is needed, as well as better management of airspace, according to the Swansea researchers, who worked with Sergio Lambertucci from the University of Comahue, Argentina.

The team said there is a strong case for creating airspace reserves in areas where human-wildlife conflict is high.

Dr Emily Shepard, from the University of Swansea, said: “One of the main challenges is to increase the awareness of the many ways we are altering the airspace. Appreciation of this, and the steps we can take to mitigate our impacts, should be embedded in planning decisions from local to regional scales, just as it is for other habitat types”. 

Become a member or log in to add this story to your CPD history

RSPCA braced for ‘hectic hedgehog month’

News Story 1
 The RSPCA says that it is bracing itself for a ‘hectic hedgehog month’ after calls to the charity about the creatures peaked this time last year.

More than 10,000 calls about hedgehogs were made to the RSPCA’s national helpline in 2018, 1,867 of which were in July. This compares with just 133 calls received in February of the same year.

Evie Button, the RSPCA’s scientific officer, said: “July is our busiest month for hedgehogs. Not only do calls about hedgehogs peak, but so do admissions to our four wildlife centres as members of the public and our own officers bring in orphaned, sick or injured animals for treatment and rehabilitation.” 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
ASF traces found in seized meat at NI airport

More than 300kg of illegal meat and dairy products were seized at Northern Ireland’s airports in June, DAERA has revealed.

A sample of these were tested at the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, resulting in the detection of African swine fever DNA fragments.

DAERA said that while the discovery does not pose a significant threat to Northern Ireland’s animal health status, it underlines the importance of controls placed on personal imports of meat and dairy products. Holidaymakers travelling overseas are being reminded not to bring any animal or plant products back home.