National Wildlife Research Center NWRC) |
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New Technologies to Deter Wildlife |
PROJECT GOAL: To develop and evaluate methods and technologies
for reducing the risks of wildlife strikes to civil aviation and to provide
scientifically valid methods and techniques to be used on airfields to manage
hazardous wildlife.
Project Accomplishments 2008
To be certified for commercial passenger traffic by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), many U.S. airports are required to develop and implement a wildlife hazard-management plan. The FAA strongly discourages any management practice that might increase wildlife in the vicinity of an airport. NWRC’s research is focused on understanding the nature of wildlife hazards at airports, developing management tools to reduce those hazards, and providing WS and airport personnel with information on the latest strategies for controlling wildlife hazards.
Translocation of Immature Bald Eagles to Reduce Eagle-Aircraft Collisions—Bald eagles, once endangered in the lower 48 states, have increased exponentially since dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane—commonly referred to as DDT—was banned in the United States in 1972. Bald eagle populations recovered sufficiently, and in 2007, the U. S.Fish & Wildlife Service took this species off the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants. Unfortunately, this growth has resulted in increased incidences of collisions between bald eagles and commercial and military aircraft. Bald eagles far exceed the airworthiness standards for airframes, windshields, and engines set by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA); collisions with this species pose a high level of risk to aircraft and passenger safety.
Biologists from the NWRC Ohio field station collaborated with WS Minnesota to study the effectiveness of relocating bald eagles away from the St. Paul Downtown Airport as a method of reducing the risk of eagle-aircraft collisions. During FY 2008 through 2010, NWRC researchers will determine if or when translocated eagles return to the airfield. The researchers will live-capture a total of five immature bald eagles, fit them with Global Position Satellite-capable transmitters, and release them at various locations away from the airport. Translocated eagles will be tracked using a satellite network to determine their specific movement and activity patterns.
Initial results from this study indicate that translocated eagles remain within 50 miles of their release site and, for at least a couple of months, are not likely to return to the airfield where they are captured. Information from this study will be used to develop effective methods for reducing the risk of collisions between bald eagles and aircraft.
Effigies As Deterrents—Bird control at and around airfields is critical to safe airfield operation. Numerous bird-control products and strategies are available, all of which have limitations due to rapid habituation, ineffectiveness, expense, or other factors. There is a need for new methods to manage birds at airports and other locations. In recent years, realistic effigies of dead turkey vultures have proven effective as a species-specific means to disperse roosting vultures. To determine if this concept can be expanded to deter other birds that are a problem at airfields, NWRC researchers conducted trials using prepared ring-billed and herring gulls as effigies at landfills, a nesting colony, and a containment disposal facility next to an airport. Results at landfills varied according to their distance to the active dumping area (active face) and the time of year. In winter, gulls loafing away from the active face would stay clear of effigies for up to four weeks. When set on or adjacent to the active face, gulls would initially disperse but then return within hours to weeks. Effigies were not effective in nesting colonies. Gull reaction to effigies at a containment disposal facility showed initial good response, especially when reinforced with pyrotechnics and lethal control; however, habituation occurred after two months of exposure. The researchers concluded that although effigies alone will not keep gulls away from extensive areas, when used as part of an integrated bird control program, they can reduce gull presence in specified areas.
Earthworm Hazards on Airport Runways—Scientists in Ohio are investigating methods for keeping earthworms off of runways at airports. Although earthworms generally are considered beneficial, they can be a hazard at airports, especially when found in large numbers on runways or taxiways after heavy rainfall. Additionally, earthworms attract birds, especially gulls, thereby increasing the risk of bird strikes to aircraft that are landing or taking off. A dramatic example of this occurred during a 35–minute period on September 3, 2004, at Calgary International Airport (YYC). A Canadian commercial B737 and an A319 jet aborted takeoffs after multiple strikes with gulls attracted to the runways to feed on earthworms. The B737 had strikes and damage to both engines and the A319 had damage (apparently uncontained failure) to one engine.
Currently, no pesticides are registered or legally available for controlling earthworms, and the high costs associated with development and registration probably preclude this option. Therefore, the NWRC researchers are investigating the use of inert, abrasive materials, naturally occurring compounds, and fertilizers to reduce earthworm incursions onto runways. Initial lab results from research conducted at the NWRC field station in Sandusky, Ohio, identified several naturally occurring compounds that show promise as worm repellents, but additional lab and field tests are needed before these substances can be evaluated on airfields. As with most wildlife damage management scenarios, the researchers anticipate that an integrated approach will be necessary to reduce the number of worms crawling onto runways. Future research plans call for the evaluation of a repellent in combination with a soil additive that creates a more acidic and perhaps abrasive soil in areas of concern at airports.
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Sandusky,
OH, Field Station
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