Behavioural responses of Sandwich terns following the construction of offshore wind farms

Offshore wind farms (OWFs) are a key part of efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change. However, they have the potential to negatively impact seabird species through collisions with turbine blades, displacement from preferred foraging habitat and the perception of wind farms as a barrier to migrating or foraging birds. Whilst the data available to model these impacts are increasing, many data gaps remain, particularly in relation to the impacts of barrier effects. We analyse the movements of Sandwich terns in relation to an offshore wind farm cluster using data collected as part of a multi-year GPS tracking study. Over the course of the study, two additional wind farms were built within the home range of the breeding colony. The construction of these wind farms coincided with a change in the foraging and commuting areas used by breeding terns. Whilst birds entered OWFs when foraging, they appeared to avoid them when commuting, driving an apparent ‘funnelling’ effect to important feeding locations. We discuss if this could be driven by changes to the prey base, subsequent displacement and potentially altered routes reflecting new favourable airflow patterns following OWF construction. Our results suggest that behavioural responses of birds to OWFs may be the result of a complex series of ecological and environmental interactions, as opposed to simplistic assumptions around the perception of the OWF as a barrier to movement.