– It tracks all birds that move in the area up to a mile away, says researcher Anna Nilsson at the Norwegian Institute for Natural Research (NINA). She stands next to a brand new bird radar that the institute has installed at the Lista Bird Station in Agder. The radar, the second of its kind in Norway, will map migratory birds both in spring and autumn. The aim is to find out how the birds migrate along the coast to reduce conflict with wind turbines. The researchers will also look at important resting places for the birds along the migration routes. – It is also a city where the development of wind power should ideally be avoided, says Nilsson. The radar goes around once a second to scan the airspace. Researcher Anna Nilsson at the Norwegian Institute for Natural Research says that the project has a duration of two years. Photo: Hans Erik Weiby / news Colliding with wind turbines The project will result in a tool that will facilitate the work of placing wind power where it causes the least possible damage. Senior researcher Roel May at NINA is the leader of the project called VisAviS. He believes it is high time to get these data in place. – We know that millions of birds migrate along the coast, but not exactly where and when. That knowledge is vague and unclear, says May. He says that wind turbines are dangerous for migratory birds in two ways: The birds can collide with them. They form a barrier that means the birds have to fly around and thus use extra energy. The goal is for both governing authorities and the wind power industry to benefit from the knowledge. Common snipe at Lista lighthouse. – The waders are numerous and there are many different species, says Jan Erik Røer in Birdlife Norway. Photo: Jan Erik Røer An eldorado for birdwatchers Advisor Jan Erik Røer in Birdlife Norway has worked as a project coordinator at the Lista Bird Station for over 30 years. He says that Lista is an eldorado for birdwatchers. The city is the largest landing place in the country for migratory birds on their way across the North Sea. The first birds enter there and the last birds leave from there. – Lista has a completely unique position in Norway because of the coastline. It is the place in the country where the most bird species have been seen, around 340, says Røer, who is himself a keen photographer. The second bird radar in Norway is located at Utsira in the North Sea. The project also receives data from a bird radar that Equinor has placed on the floating offshore wind farm Hyvind Tampen in the North Sea. Jan Erik Røer is a consultant at Birdlife Norway. Here he is on the trail of a peregrine falcon. Photo: Hans Erik Weiby / news Most fly at night – Look, there’s a peregrine falcon flying there! Røer has been “caught” in the binoculars. He explains that the bird radar cannot recognize bird species, but that the peregrine falcon would have seen “tracks” in the radar. The brand new bird radar at Lista Bird Station will map all migratory birds that move in our area in autumn. Photo: Hans Erik Weiby / news – Then the person who stands here and looks at the “radar track” can enter peregrine falcon and it goes into the base, says Røer. The results in the database are then processed by the Norwegian Institute for Natural Sciences (NINA). The project is financed by the Norwegian Research Council and the offshore wind industry itself. The radar will map and record bird migration for two years, spring and autumn. The project has a cost frame of NOK 20 million. Ringås at Lista lighthouse. – They breed on Svalbard and move past the coast in the spring. Wind turbines will be a threat to this population, says Jan Erik Røer in Birdlife Norway. Photo: Jan Erik Røer Has observed for 33 years Lista Bird Station has observed birds for 33 years and has been given the task of doing a ground verification of the birds. All their material can also be combined with what the radar finds out. Finding out which species are passing through is important because some of them may be red-listed. Røer refers to ringed geese where the entire population migrates within a couple of days. They also always follow a fixed route. – A large offshore wind farm in the middle of their migration route, which could “grind up” the entire population, is a typical horror scenario, says Røer. He explains that the project is in any case only a small piece in a large puzzle. Because 90 percent of birds are active at night. Then no one follows them. – We therefore have no control over the majority of the birds, but by getting a picture of the main migration routes, we map how the birds migrate along the coast, says Røer.
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New bird radar on Lista will contribute to less conflict with wind turbines – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
