Birdwatchers see rare bird killed by wind turbine by Jongsstraw

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Birdwatchers see rare bird killed by wind turbine

POSTED BY: JONGSSTRAW
UPDATED: Saturday, June 29, 2013 03:18
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Friday, June 28, 2013 9:47 AM

A travelling group of bird watchers witnessed a rare bird die after flying into a community wind turbine.

The White-throated Needletail – the world’s fastest flying bird – was thousand of miles off course after turning up at Tarbert on the Isle of Harris.

It was first spotted by two bird spotters from Northumberland on Monday.

There has not been a sighting of the species in Britain since 1991 when a single bird was seen four times – in Kent, Staffordshire, Derbyshire and finally Shetland.

Now 22 years later another White-throated Needletail turned up in the UK.

But after over 80 twitches flocked to Harris – with scores more on their way – the bird flew into a wind turbine at Tarbert, watched by about 40 people.

“It was seen by birders fly straight into the turbine. It is ironic that after waiting so long for this bird to turn up in the UK it was killed by a wind turbine and not a natural predator,” said Josh Jones of the authorative Bird Guides.

“It is tragic. More than 80 people had already arrived on the island and others were coming from all over the country. But it just flew into the turbine. It was killed instantly.

“The corpse will be sent to a museum but obviously this is just terrible. Some people will have lost the cost of their flights.

“We think the bird had probably come from Siberia. It is so sad what has happened.”

Western Isles wildlife expert Steve Duffield added:”Rhe bird in Harris was hanging around for its third day – it was attracting a lot of attention from the birding community with people travelling from southern England to see it.

“It was first officially identified by Mark Cocker and Adam Gretton on Tuesday although it had been present the previous day at Loch Hirecleit.

“Once the news was spread on the evening many birders started preparing for the long journey north in the hope of catching up with the bird. Unfortunately after showing very well to the delight of all present yesterday – probably around 40 people in the morning with others arriving in the afternoon – it was seen to hit the blade of a small wind turbine in Tarbert and was killed. A very sad end to a delightful bird that may well have attracted many more birders to Harris over the following days had it not met it’s untimely demise.”

A spokesman for Bird Guides said it was only the ninth recording in the UK since 1846 when it was first seen in Essex.

“Why it is has ended up in Harris is a bit of a mystery – it should be well away such as in Siberia, Australia or Japan,” he said.

“It has obviously got lost and the weather may have played a part – it is difficult to say.

“It was spotted by chance by two birders from Northumberland who were on holiday – and they knew what they were looking at. So there is a chance it may have been here a lot longer.

“It could have re-orientated itself and is capable of flying vast distances – in fact it spends more time in the air than on the ground. So it could have worked out it’s in the wrong place and fly to where it should be.

The White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus), also known as Needle-tailed Swift or Spine-tailed Swift, is a large swift.

It is said to be the fastest-flying bird in flapping flight, with a confirmed maximum of 111.6 km/h (69.3 mph).It is commonly reputed to reach velocities of up to 170 km/h (105 mph), though this has not been verified.

The birds have very short legs which they use only for clinging to vertical surfaces. They build their nests in rock crevices in cliffs or hollow trees. They never settle voluntarily on the ground and spend most of their lives in the air, living on the insects they catch in their beaks.

The swifts breed in rocky hills in central Asia and southern Siberia. This species is migratory, wintering south in the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Australia. It is a rare vagrant in western Europe, but has been recorded as far west as Norway, Sweden as well as Britain.

The White-throated Needletail is a mid sized bird, similar in size to Alpine Swift, but a quite different build, with a heavier barrel-like body. They are black except for a white throat, white undertail, which extends on to the flanks, and a somewhat paler brown back.

The Hirundapus needletailed swifts get their name from the spiny end to the tail, which is not forked as in the Apus typical swifts.

https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/06/27/birdwatchers-see-rare-bird-
killed-by-wind-turbine/

'But what of Lazarus? Alas, what of Lazarus?'

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Friday, June 28, 2013 11:55 AM

WHOZIT

DRILL BABY DRILL!!

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Friday, June 28, 2013 1:16 PM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

These wild stories about birds dying via wind turbines are nothing more than propaganda genned up by BIG OIL to turn the public away from clean, healthy, limitless reusable energy.

Fathom the hypocrisy of a government that requires every citizen to prove they are insured... but not everyone must prove they are a citizen

Resident USA Freedom Fundie

" AU, that was great, LOL!! " - Chrisisall

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Friday, June 28, 2013 4:39 PM

JONGSSTRAW

Quote:
Originally posted by AURaptor:

These wild stories about birds dying via wind turbines are nothing more than propaganda genned up by BIG OIL to turn the public away from clean, healthy, limitless reusable energy.

Well you know the old saying ...A bird in the hand is worth two in the windmill rotor blades.

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Friday, June 28, 2013 7:17 PM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

I'll bet not one single animal, endangered, rare, or otherwise, ever died in an oil spill, huh?

"I supported Bush in 2000 and 2004 and intellegence [sic] had very little to do with that decision." - Hero

"I was wrong" - Hero, 2012

Mitt Romney, introducing his running mate: "Join me in welcoming the next President of the United States, Paul Ryan!"

Rappy's response? "You're lying, gullible ( believing in some BS you heard on msnbc ) or hard of hearing."

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Friday, June 28, 2013 8:39 PM

MAGONSDAUGHTER

so was there a point to this thread?

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Saturday, June 29, 2013 1:26 AM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Quote:
Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
so was there a point to this thread?

Wind power kills birds, is noisy, and is also unreliable.

But other than those things, nothing.

Fathom the hypocrisy of a government that requires every citizen to prove they are insured... but not everyone must prove they are a citizen

Resident USA Freedom Fundie

" AU, that was great, LOL!! " - Chrisisall

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Saturday, June 29, 2013 3:18 AM

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Oh is that the point.

The article seems to just be relaying a tragic accident. The bird could have as easily been killed by a plane.

A parrot owner was given £2,200 in compensation after a low-flying RAF plane caused his feathered friend to drop dead.

The pet bird was terrified by the noise when the Hercules transport aircraft roared over its owner’s house.

Its death in Ayrshire followed a similar incident where a low-flying plane caused a parrot to fall off its perch and break both its legs. Military chiefs agreed to cover vet bills – including two splints.

Both cases were among 200 separate claims for damage caused by low-flying military aircraft in the past three years. They left the Ministry of Defence with a £1.4million compensation bill.

An MoD spokesman said: “The MoD will authorise payment of reasonable ex-gratia compensation where a link can be established between MoD military low-flying activity and any subsequent loss or injury sustained by a claimant.”

The spokesman added: “We are very aware of the risks of military flying and the safety of those on the ground, as well as our air crew, is one of our highest priorities.”

Other settlements included £300 to two therapy groups disturbed by fighter planes overhead and £900 for damage to a child’s trampoline in Lancashire.

Much larger sums were paid out for personal injuries and damage to livestock, buildings and crops, the MoD said.

In the past year a helicopter injured cattle and broke a fence in Dumfries.

Chicken farmers have also been given payouts after they claimed aircraft noise affected their birds’ ability to lay eggs.

Tim Price, spokesman for farmers’ insurer NFU Mutual, said: “We regularly deal with claims from farmers whose livestock has been spooked by planes.

“It causes death and injuries to livestock and there’s a risk to farmers and members of the public, who could themselves be injured by stampeding animals.”

The MoD said a plane was classed as flying low if it was at less than 2,000ft above the ground or 500ft for helicopters.

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