Presentations

Abstract

Bird detection and automated turbine shutdown systems are increasingly deployed across European wind farms to mitigate collision risks while maintaining operational efficiency. This study analyzed real turbine shutdowns in multiple locations between 2023 and 2025, focusing on the contribution of different bird species groups: high-priority protected species, other protected species, and huntable species. The total number of large bird detections ranged from several hundred to several thousand per monitoring period, with 200–1,200 shutdown signals recorded per site. The number of actual shutdowns depended on wind speed, i.e., whether turbines were operating under the given conditions, demonstrating the importance of environmental factors in system performance. Most turbine stops involved protected species, accounting for 77–99% of cases, while huntable species represented only 0.5–55%. Precautionary measures were applied in cases of uncertain species identification, ensuring the full protection of birds of prey and other legally protected species. False positives were minimal, ranging from 0.01–1.4% of all detections and 0.03–5.4% of all shutdowns, indicating high reliability of the detection-shutdown systems. These results suggest that while species recognition could potentially reduce unnecessary shutdowns for huntable species, the precautionary approach already effectively protects high-priority and other protected species. Overall, the systems demonstrated a strong balance between wildlife protection and operational continuity, confirming their effectiveness across varied European contexts. The study provides evidence that full species recognition may not be strictly necessary to achieve conservation objectives, although it could refine operational efficiency in specific scenarios. These findings have direct implications for wind farm developers and policymakers seeking to optimize mitigation strategies without compromising turbine performance.