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can you bring the birds back though?


Many more birds will be harmed by unchecked climate change than wind farms.


Estimated 350m animals killed by cars every year in US alone


I don't have sources off the top of my head, but I think there is good evidence that wind farms (and other large structures!) can disrupt migration routes, which can pose very large challenges for birds.

So where to put wind farms to minimise disruption is a definite consideration.

EDIT: quick google to find some sources:

https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365...


They grow back by themselves.


Yes. Evolution brings them back as it did hedgehogs - who evolved to run rather than curl into a ball at the sight of a big lorry.


I'd like to hear more about the hedgehog story. Is there a writeup you can link to?


Cats kill 1.3 - 1.4 billion birds/year. Buildings 1 billion/year. Glass windows?

Wind farms - 1 million per year.


Cats rarely kill large raptors.


They kill the prey of large predatory birds. If we stop hunting them down ourselves and they have enough food, wind turbines are no threat to their population.

There are areas where wind turbines have been put up near population of eagles (Smøla in Norway for instance) and the population is increasing. Even though we know some of them are killed by the wind turbine.

Giving them a good habitat and not hunting them or their prey to extinction is orders of magnitude more important than not building wind power (as long as we’re not incredibly stupid about where we put them). And avoiding global warming is an incredibly important part of preserving their habitats. Also.. have you seen what oil spills does to birds?

Which is why the National Audubon society is cautiously positive to wind power.


Domestic cats don't affect the food supply of large raptors because those cats are where people are, and where large raptors, for the most part, aren't. (The peopled places that have largish raptors also tend to have a surplus of pigeons.)

Raptor hunting has been illegal for decades in the US.


I guess you're also protesting against skyscrapers?




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