Large numbers of migratory tree-bats are being killed at wind turbines worldwide and it remains unclear why this is happening. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that prey items for bats are abundant in the immediate vicinity of wind turbines. During the 2012 fall migratory season (July to October), we used light taps and malaise traps to sample the aerial invertebrate community at Wolf Ridge Wind, LLC, in north-central Texas. Overall, we collected more invertebrates and a greater number of species earlier in the season compared to later in the season and the use of malaise traps significantly added to invertebrate diversity yielded by light traps. Invertebrate abundance and species richness did not differ between the base of turbines and 400 m away, but compilation of data from previous bat diet studies suggested that the area around wind turbines provided foraging resources for local bats. Further research is needed, however, to determine if bats are attracted to wind turbines as a foraging resource.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TCU/oai:etd.tcu.edu:etd-05232013-102339 |
| Date | 23 May 2013 |
| Creators | Cochran, Courtenay Danielle |
| Contributors | Dr. Amanda Hale, Dr. Tony Burgess, Dr, Ray Drenner |
| Publisher | Texas Christian University |
| Source Sets | Texas Christian University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf, application/msword, application/octet-stream |
| Source | http://etd.tcu.edu/etdfiles/available/etd-05232013-102339/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to TCU or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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