Incidencia de los parques eólicos sobre las poblaciones de quirópteros del Campo de Gibraltar

Abstract

Bats (order Chiroptera) represents one of the most threatened taxa between mammals, mainly due to the influence of human infrastructures, and in particular, the effects of wind farms. The “Campo de Gibraltar” is one of the main areas in Andalucía for bat colonies settlement, since they find suitable habitats. However, this is also one of the main areas for wind power development in Europe, with 29 wind farms accounting 541 wind turbines, mainly concentrated in Tarifa. This work has three principal goals: first, an analysis of the distribution of the principal bat species along the area. Secondly, to study the incidence of the wind farms on the bat species in Cadiz, using a dataset on bat mortality provided by the Junta de Andalucía, with special attention on these facilities located in the Campo de Gibraltar. In the period 2009-2014, 1,810 bat fatalities concerning windfarms were recorded, 309 of them took place in Campo de Gibraltar. Common species, like those of the genus Pipistrellus, were the most frequently injured, but also very threatened species where damaged, like Nyctalus lasiopterus and Nyctalus noctula. Finally, the implications of natural protected areas management on bat conservation is discussed.