U. S. DEPARTMENT

OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION

ADMINISTRATION

WILDLIFE STRIKES

TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT

IN THE

UNITED STATES

1990–2008

U. S. Department

of Agriculture

Animal and Plant

Health Inspection

Service

Wildlife Services

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL WILDLIFE STRIKE DATABASE

SERIAL REPORT NUMBER 15

REPORT OF THE ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR OF AIRPORTS

OFFICE OF AIRPORT SAFETY AND STANDARDS

AIRPORT SAFETY & CERTIFICATION

WASHINGTON, DC

SEPTEMBER 2009
The U.S. Departments of Transportation and Agriculture prohibit discrimination in

all their programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin,

gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or

family status (not all prohibited bases apply to all programs). Persons with

disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program

information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the appropriate

agency.

The Federal Aviation Administration produced this report in cooperation with the

U. S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service,

Wildlife Services.
i

AUTHORS

Richard A. Dolbeer, Science Advisor, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program, USDA, APHIS,

Wildlife Services, 6100 Columbus Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870

Sandra E. Wright, Wildlife Strike Database Manager, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program,

USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, 6100 Columbus Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870

John Weller, National Wildlife Biologist, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Federal

Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20591

Michael J. Begier, National Coordinator, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program, USDA, APHIS,

Wildlife Services, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250

COVER

Resident Canada geese and white-tailed deer foraging on both sides of a runway at a

General Aviation airport in eastern North Carolina represent two of the top three most

hazardous species groups involved in wildlife strikes with aircraft. The resident (nonmigratory) Canada goose population in North America increased about 4-fold from 1

million in 1990 to 3.9 million in 2008 while white-tailed deer more than doubled in number

between 1985 and 2005 from 14 million to over 30 million, respectively.

Anyone with quality photographs of aircraft damage resulting from wildlife strikes or of wildlife at airports is

encouraged to submit them to one of the authors for consideration in future wildlife strike publications.
ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES iii

LIST OF FIGURES iv

LIST OF APPENDICES iv

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS v

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY vii

WILDLIFE STRIKES TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT IN THE UNITED STATES, 1990–2008 1

LITERATURE CITED 14

TABLES 19

FIGURES 52

APPENDIX A. SELECTED SIGNIFICANT STRIKES TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT IN THE

UNITED STATES, 2008

54
iii

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by wildlife

group, USA, 1990–2008(see Figure 1).

19

Table 2. Source of information for reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2008.

20

Table 3. Person filing report of wildlife strike to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–

2008.

21

Table 4. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by type of

operator, USA, 1990–2008.

21

Table 5. Number of reported bird, bat, terrestrial mammal, and reptile

strikes to civil aircraft by USA state, including the District of

Columbia (DC), Puerto Rico (PR), USA-possessed Pacific

Islands (PI), and the U.S. Virgin Islands (VI), 1990–2008.

22

Table 6. Number of reported bird and terrestrial mammal strikes to civil

aircraft by month, USA, 1990–2008.

23

Table 7. Reported time of occurrence of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2008.

24

Table 8. Reported phase of flight at time of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2008.

25

Table 9. Number of reported bird strikes to civil aircraft by height (feet)

above ground level (AGL), USA, 1990–2008.

26

Table 10. Civil aircraft components reported as being struck and damaged

by wildlife, USA, 1990–2008.

27

Table 11. Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from

wildlife strikes, USA, 1990–2008.

28

Table 12 Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from bird

and terrestrial mammal strikes by year, USA, 1990–2008.

29

Table 13. Reported effect-on-flight of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–2008.

30

Table 14. Total reported strikes, strikes causing damage, strikes having a

negative effect-on-flight (EOF), strikes involving >1 animal,

aircraft downtime, and costs by identified wildlife species for civil

aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

31
iv

Table 15. Number of reported strikes, strikes with damage, and strikes

having a negative effect-on-flight (EOF) for the four most

commonly struck bird groups and three most commonly struck

terrestrial mammal groups, civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

47

Table 16. Number of strikes to civil aircraft causing human fatality or injury

and number of injuries and fatalities by wildlife species, USA,

1990–2008.

48

Table 17. Number of civil aircraft lost (destroyed or damaged beyond

repair) after striking wildlife by wildlife species and aircraft mass

category, USA, 1990-2008.

49

Table 18. Number of reported wildlife strikes indicating damage or a

negative effect-on-flight (EOF) and reported losses in hours of

downtime and U.S. dollars for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

50

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Number of reported bird (N = 87,416) and terrestrial mammal

(N = 1,912) strikes to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Additionally, 299 and 100 strikes involving bats and reptiles,

respectively, were reported for a total of 89,727 strikes by all

species of wildlife (see Table 1).

52

Figure 2. Number of reported bird (N = 9,606) and terrestrial mammal (N

= 738) strikes causing damage to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Additionally, 7 and 1 damaging strikes involving bats and

reptiles, respectively, were reported for a total of 10,352

damaging strikes by all species of wildlife (see Tables 11, 12).

52

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix A. Selected Significant Strikes To Civil Aircraft In The United

States, 2008

54
v

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The database files and support programs used to enter and organize strike data initially

were established by E. LeBoeuf and J. Rapol, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),

Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, DC, and were subsequently

updated by A. M. Dickey and A. Newman, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University,

Prescott, Arizona. E. C. Cleary, who retired from the FAA in 2007, was instrumental in

developing and co-authoring previous reports in this series. We acknowledge his longstanding contributions to the database. We greatly appreciate the assistance provided

by these above-acknowledged professionals. S. Agrawal and R. King, FAA William J.

Hughes Technical Center, Atlantic City, NJ also provided critical support and advice.

Finally, we acknowledge and thank all of the people who took the time and effort to

report wildlife strikes – pilots, mechanics, control tower personnel, airport operations

personnel, airline flight safety officers, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services biologists, and many others. Sponsorship

and funds for the ongoing maintenance and analysis of the FAA National Wildlife Strike

Database are provided by the FAA, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington,

DC, and Airports Division, Airport Technology Branch, FAA William J. Hughes Technical

Center, Atlantic City, NJ.
vi

This page intentionally left blank
vii

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The 7,516 reported wildlife strikes to U.S. civil aircraft in 2008 brought the 19 year total of

wildlife strikes between 1990 and 2008 to 89,727. Birds (97.4%) and terrestrial

mammals (2.1%) were struck 72% of the time at or below 500 feet AGL and 92% of the

time at or below 3,000 feet AGL. Both classes of animals were struck more often in the

late summer/ autumn season. Fifty-one percent of bird strikes occurred between July

and October while 61% of terrestrial mammal strikes occurred between July and

November. Terrestrial mammals are more likely to be struck at night (64%) whereas

birds are struck more often during the day (62%). Both birds (60%) and terrestrial

mammals (55%) are more likely to be struck during the landing (i.e., descent, approach

or landing roll) phase of flight compared to take-off and climb (37% and 34%,

respectively).

During the five years between 2004 and 2008 there was an average of 20 reported

wildlife strikes/ day. Although aircraft strikes with terrestrial mammals resulted in a much

higher likelihood of damage than strikes with birds (59% to 14%, respectively) the overall

likelihood of a strike resulting in damage is 15%. Forty-nine strikes (<1% of total) have

resulted in a destroyed aircraft; thirty-three (67%) of these occurred at a General Aviation

airport.

Events in early 2009 amplified public awareness of wildlife strikes to aircraft. The

dramatic "forced landing" of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River on 15 January

2009 after Canada geese were ingested in both engines on the Airbus 320 (National

Transportation Safety Board 2009, Marra et al. 2009) dramatically demonstrated to the

public at large that bird strikes are a serious aviation safety issue.

Historically, this annual report was based on information from a portion of the available

data fields contained in the National Wildlife Strike Database (i.e., annual reports from

1994 – current). These reports provided summary information on the nature of wildlife
viii

strikes in a format that was found useful by the aviation industry. However, the National

Wildlife Strike Database was made available by the FAA to the public on April 24, 2009

and interested parties now have the opportunity to query and examine the data

independently. It is important to note that wildlife strike reporting is currently voluntary

and un-even. Analyses of the database can produce dissimilar comparisons that involve

subject matter such as airports and airlines. Future editions of this annual report will

explore additional data summaries that involve all fields contained within the National

Wildlife Strike Database.

There continues to be a need for increased and more detailed reporting of information

concerning wildlife strikes. Reported strikes have gradually increased each year since

1990 yet only 44% have provided information on the type of bird struck and only 28% of

the reports identified the birds to species level.

AP photo

US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River on 15 January 2009
ix

This page intentionally left blank
1

WILDLIFE STRIKES TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT IN THE UNITED STATES,

1990–2008

INTRODUCTION

This report presents a summary analysis of data from the FAA’s National Wildlife Strike

Database for the 19-year period 1990 through 2008. Unless noted otherwise, all totals

are for the 19-year period, and percentages are of the total known. Because of the large

amount of data, most tables do not display data for individual years, 1990 through 2008.

Civil and military aviation communities have long recognized that the threat to human

A Cessna 500 Citation crashed in a woodlot shortly after take-off from Wiley

Post Airport, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on 4 March 2008. Analysis of organic

remains recovered from the aircraft by a U.S. Department of Agriculture

(USDA) wildlife biologist under the direction of the National Transportation

Safety Board indicated that the aircraft had struck at least 1 American white

pelican during the initial climb (Dove et al. 2009). All 5 people on board were

killed. Photo by USDA.
2

health and safety from aircraft collisions with wildlife (wildlife strikes) is real and

increasing (Dolbeer 2000, MacKinnon et al. 2001). Globally, wildlife strikes have killed

more than 229 people and destroyed over 210 aircraft since 1988 (Richardson and

West 2000; Thorpe 2003; 2005; Dolbeer, unpublished data). Three factors that

contribute to this increasing threat are:

1. Many populations of wildlife species commonly involved in strikes have increased

markedly in the last few decades and adapted to living in urban environments,

including airports. For example, from 1980 to 2007, the resident (non-migratory)

Canada goose population in the USA and Canada increased at a mean rate of 7.3

percent per year (Sauer et al. 2008). Other species showing significant mean

annual rates of increase included bald eagles (4.6 percent), wild turkeys (12.1

percent), turkey vultures (2.2 percent), American white pelicans (2.9 percent),

double-crested cormorants (4.0 percent), and sandhill cranes (5.0 percent). Thirteen

of the 14 bird species in North America with mean body masses greater than 8 lbs

have shown significant population increases over the past three decades (Dolbeer

and Eschenfelder 2003). The white-tailed deer population increased from a low of

about 350,000 in 1900 to over 30 million in the past decade (McCabe and McCabe

1997, Hubbard et al. 2000, Adams et al. 2005).

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

Data from North American Breeding Bird Survey

http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/bbs.html

The American white pelican population in North America increased at a mean annual

rate of 4.3 percent from 1966-2007.

2. Concurrent with population increases of many large bird species, air traffic has

increased substantially since 1980. Passenger enplanements in the USA increased

from about 310 million in 1980 to 750 million in 2008 (3.2 percent per year), and

commercial air traffic increased from about 18 million aircraft movements in 1980 to
3

28 million in 2008 (1.6 percent per year, Federal Aviation Administration 2009). USA

commercial air traffic is predicted to continue growing at a rate of about 1.3 percent

per year to 35 million movements by 2025.

3. Commercial air carriers have replaced their older three- or four-engine aircraft fleets

with more efficient and quieter, two-engine aircraft. In 1965, about 90 percent of the

2,100 USA passenger aircraft had three or

four engines. In 2005, the USA passenger

fleet had grown to about 8,200 aircraft, and

only about 10 percent had three or four

engines (U.S. Department of

Transportation 2009). With the steady

advances in technology over the past

several decades, today’s two-engine

aircraft are more powerful than yesterday’s

three- and four-engine aircraft, and they

are more reliable. However, in the event of

a multiple ingestion event (e.g., the US

Airways Flight 1549 incident on 15 January

2009), aircraft with two engines may have

vulnerabilities not shared by their three or

four engine-equipped counterparts.

Additionally, previous research has

indicated that birds are less able to detect

and avoid modern jet aircraft with quieter

turbofan engines (Chapter 3, International

Civil Aviation Organization 1993) than

older aircraft with noisier (Chapter 2)

engines (Burger 1983, Kelly et al. 1999).

As a result of these factors, experts within

the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force expect the

risk, frequency, and potential severity of wildlife-aircraft collisions to grow over the next

decade.

The FAA has initiated several programs to address this important safety issue. Among

the various programs is the collection and analysis of data from wildlife strikes. The

FAA began collecting wildlife strike data in 1965. However, except for cursory

examinations of the strike reports to determine general trends, the data were never

submitted to rigorous analysis until the 1990s. In 1995, the FAA, through an

interagency agreement with the USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, (USDA/APHIS/WS),

initiated a project to obtain more objective estimates of the magnitude and nature of the

national wildlife strike problem for civil aviation. This project involves having specialists

from the USDA/APHIS/WS: (1) edit all strike reports (FAA Form 5200-7, Birds/Other

Wildlife Strike Report) received by the FAA since 1990 to ensure consistent, error-free

Whereas 3- or 4-engine aircraft dominated

the U.S. passenger fleet 40 years ago,

about 90 percent of aircraft today have 2

engines. Populations of large flocking

birds are on the increase; in the unlikely

event of a multiple ingestion event, aircraft

with two engines may have vulnerabilities

not shared by their three or four engineequipped counterparts. In this photo, the

propane cannon in the foreground is part

of an integrated program to disperse birds

from runways at JFK International Airport.

Photo by R. Dolbeer.
4

data; (2) enter all edited strike reports in the FAA National Wildlife Strike Database; (3)

supplement FAA-reported strikes with additional, non-duplicated strike reports from

other sources; (4) provide the FAA with an updated computer file each month containing

all edited strike reports; and (5) assist the FAA with the production of annual and special

reports summarizing the results of analyses of the data from the National Wildlife Strike

Database. Such analyses are critical to determining the economic cost of wildlife

strikes, the magnitude of safety issues, and most important, the nature of the problems

(e.g., wildlife species involved, types of damage, height and phase of flight during which

strikes occur, and seasonal patterns). The information obtained from these analyses

provides the foundation for FAA policies and guidance and for refinements in the

development, implementation, and justification of integrated research and management

efforts to reduce wildlife strikes.

The first annual report on wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the USA, covering 1994, was

completed in November 1995 (Dolbeer et al. 1995). Since then we have published

subsequent reports covering the years 1993–1995, 1992–1996, 1991–1997, 1990–

1998, 1990–1999, 1990–2000, 1990–2001, 1990-2002, 1990-2003, 1990-2004, 1990-

2005, 1990-2006, 1990-2007 (Cleary et al. 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002a,

2002b, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007; Dolbeer and Wright 2008). This is the 15th report

in the series and covers the 19-year period, 1990-2008. All of these annual reports are

accessible as PDF documents at http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov.

A sample of significant wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the USA during 2008 is

presented in Appendix A. These recent strike examples demonstrate the widespread

and diverse nature of the problem. A more extensive list of significant strike events,

1990-2008, is available at http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov/public_html/index.html.

RESULTS

NUMBER OF REPORTED STRIKES

For the 19-year period (1990-2008), 89,727 strikes were reported to the FAA. Birds

were involved in 97.4 percent of the reported strikes, terrestrial mammals in 2.1 percent,

bats in 0.3 percent and reptiles in 0.1 percent (Table 1).

The number of strikes annually reported more than quadrupled from 1,759 in 1990 to

7,516 in 2008 (Table 1, Figure 1). We suggest that the increase in reports from 1990 to

2008 was the result of several factors: an increased awareness of the wildlife strike

issue, an increase in aircraft operations, an increase in populations of hazardous wildlife

species, and an increase in the number of strikes (Dolbeer 2000, Dolbeer and

Eschenfelder 2003).
5

METHODS OF REPORTING STRIKES

Most (66 percent) of the 89,727 strike reports were filed using the paper (43 percent) or

electronic (23 percent) version of FAA Form 5200-7, Bird/Other Wildlife Strike Report.

Since the online version of this form became available in April 2001, use of the

electronic reporting system has climbed dramatically. In 2008, 68 percent of the strike

reports were submitted electronically compared to 20 percent in 2002 (Table 2).

SOURCE OF REPORTS

Airline personnel and pilots filed 29 percent and 24 percent of the strike reports,

respectively (Table 3). About 85 percent of the reported strikes involved commercial

aircraft; the remainder involved business, private, and government aircraft (Table 4).

Reports were received from all 50 states, from some USA territories, and from foreign

countries when USA-registered aircraft were involved (Table 5). California, Texas,

Florida, and New York had the most (7,442, 5,963. 5,571, and 4,732, respectively) bird

strike reports. Twenty-one other states each had more than 1,000 bird strikes reported.

New York, California, Texas, Colorado, and Illinois each had 100 or more terrestrial

mammal strikes. In all, strikes were reported at 1,671 airports (1,456 airports in the USA

and 215 foreign airports where USA-based aircraft were involved).

TIMING OF OCCURRENCE OF STRIKES

Most bird strikes (51 percent) occurred between July and October (Table 6); 62 percent

occurred during the day (Table 7); 60 percent occurred during the landing (descent,

approach, or landing roll) phase of flight; and 37 percent occurred during takeoff and

climb (Table 8).

During approach to a southern USA airport in December 2008, a gadwall was ingested

into the #3 engine of an MD-10 at 2,700 feet AGL. The engine and cowling had to be

replaced. Time out of service was over 3 days and repair costs exceeded $900,000.

Gadwalls (19 incidents) were 1 of 30 species of ducks involved in strikes with civil aircraft

in USA, 1990-2008 (Table 14). Engine photo courtesy of Federal Express.
6

Most terrestrial mammal strikes

(56 percent) occurred between

July and November; with 32

percent of deer strikes

concentrated in OctoberNovember (Table 6). Most

terrestrial mammal strikes (64

percent) occurred at night (Table

7), 55 percent occurred during the

landing roll, and 34 percent

occurred during the takeoff run.

HEIGHT ABOVE GROUND LEVEL

(AGL) OF STRIKES

About 59 percent of the bird strikes

occurred when the aircraft was at

a height of 100 feet or less AGL,

72 percent occurred at 500 feet or

less AGL, and 92 percent occurred

at or below 3,000 feet AGL (Table 9). Less than 2 percent of bird strikes occurred

above 10,000 feet AGL. The record height for a reported bird strike involving civil

aircraft in USA was 32,500 feet AGL. Terrestrial mammal strikes predominately

occurred at 0 feet AGL; however, 9 percent of the reported strikes occurred while the

aircraft was in the air, e.g., when the aircraft struck deer with the landing gear (Table 8).

This MD-88 struck a yellow-crowned night heron at

night at 6,000 feet AGL during descent into a

Florida airport, March 2008. Cost of repairs was

$17,000.
7

AIRCRAFT COMPONENTS DAMAGED

The aircraft components most commonly reported as struck by birds were the

nose/radome, windshield, engine, wing/rotor, and fuselage (Table 10). Aircraft engines

were the component most frequently reported as being damaged by bird strikes (32

percent of all damaged components). There were 11,060 strike events in which a total

of 11,616 engines were reported as struck (10,525 events with one engine struck, 518

with two engines struck, 12 with three engines struck, and 5 with four engines struck).

In 3,484 damaging bird-strike events involving engines, a total of 3,596 engines was

damaged (3,375 events with one engine damaged, 107 with two engines damaged, 1

with three engines damaged, and 1 with four engines damaged).

Aircraft components most

commonly reported as struck by

terrestrial mammals were the

landing gear, propeller, and

wing/rotor. These same

components ranked highest for

the parts most often reported as

damaged by mammals (Table

10).

REPORTED DAMAGE AND EFFECTON-FLIGHT

Of the 87,416 bird strikes

reported, 68,653 provided some

indication as to the nature and

extent of any damage. Of these

68,653 reports, 59,047 (86

percent) indicated the strike did

not damage the aircraft; 5,112 (7

percent) indicated the aircraft suffered minor damage; 2,456 (4 percent) indicated the

aircraft suffered substantial damage; 2,015 (3 percent) reported an uncertain level of

damage; and 24 reports (less than 1 percent) indicated the aircraft was destroyed as a

result of the strike (Table 11).

Of the 1,912 terrestrial mammal strikes reported, 1,246 reports provided some indication

as to the nature and extent of any damage. Of these 1,246 reports, 508 (41 percent)

indicated the strike did not damage the aircraft; 324 (26 percent) indicated the aircraft

suffered minor damage; 331 (27 percent) indicated the aircraft suffered substantial

damage; 58 (5 percent) reported an uncertain level of damage; and 25 (2 percent)

indicated the aircraft was destroyed as a result of the strike (Table 11). Not surprisingly,

a much higher percentage of terrestrial mammal strikes (59 percent) resulted in aircraft

damage than did bird strikes (14 percent). Deer (782 strikes, Table 6) were involved in

41 percent of the 1,912 terrestrial mammal strikes.

During landing roll at a major east coast airport at

0830 on 28 April 2008, a Boeing 737 hit a whitetailed deer. The aircraft was taken out of service

for inspection and to replace engine cowling. From

1990-2008, 1,920 strikes with terrestrial mammals,

including 782 deer strikes, were reported for civil

aircraft. Photo by USDA.
8

The number of reported bird strikes with damage to aircraft increased from 327 in 1990

to a peak of 705 in 2000 (Table 12, Figure 2). The number of reported strikes with

damage has subsequently declined by 31 percent to 493 in 2008. The number of

reported terrestrial mammal strikes with damage has followed a pattern similar to birds.

The peak number (58) in 1997 declined to 19 in 2008.

In 12 percent and 52 percent of the bird and terrestrial mammal strike reports,

respectively, an adverse effect-on-flight was reported (Table 13). Three percent of bird

strikes resulted in an aborted takeoff compared to 17 percent of terrestrial mammal

strikes.

WILDLIFE SPECIES INVOLVED IN

STRIKES

Table 14 shows the number of

reported strikes, strikes causing

damage, strikes having a negative

effect-on-flight, strikes involving >1

animal, the reported aircraft down

time, and the reported costs by

identified wildlife species for the

19-year period, 1990 through

2008.

Only 38,474 (44 percent) of the

87,416 bird strike reports provided

information on the type of bird

(e.g., gull or hawk). Furthermore,

only 24,351 (63 percent) of these

38,474 reports provided

identification to species level (e.g.,

ring-billed gull or red-tailed hawk;

Table 14). Thus, birds were

identified to species level in only

28 percent of the 87,416 reported bird strikes. In all, 381 identified species of birds were

struck; 176 identified species were reported as causing damage.

Gulls (19 percent), doves/pigeons (15 percent), raptors (13 percent), and waterfowl (8

percent) were the most frequently struck bird groups (Table 15). Gulls were involved in

2.4 times more strikes than waterfowl (7,470 and 3,175, respectively). Waterfowl,

however, were involved in 1.2 times more damaging strikes (1,418 or 31 percent of all

damaging strikes in which the bird type was identified) than were gulls (1,169 or 25

percent of all damaging strikes in which the bird type was identified). Gulls were

responsible for the greatest number of bird strikes (935 or 27 percent) that had a

negative effect-on-flight.

0

1

2

3

4

(Source U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

The resident (non-migratory) Canada goose

population in North America increased about 4-fold

from 1 million in 1990 to 3.9 million in 2008

(Dolbeer and Seubert 2009). From 1990-2008,

1,181 strikes involving Canada geese and 420

strikes with unidentified or other species of geese

were reported for civil aircraft in USA. From 1990-

2008, 381 identified species of birds have been

struck; 176 species caused aircraft damage.
9

The most frequently struck terrestrial mammals were Artiodactyls – primarily deer (43

percent) – and Carnivores – primarily coyotes (34 percent) (Tables 14, 15). Artiodactyls

were responsible for 92 percent of the mammal strikes that resulted in damage and 79

percent of the mammal strikes that had a negative effect-on-flight. In all, 33 identified

species of terrestrial mammals and 8 identified species of bats were reported struck; 19

identified species of terrestrial mammals and 1 identified species of bat caused damage

(Table 14).

HUMAN FATALITIES AND INJURIES DUE TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

For the 19-year period, reports were received of 9 wildlife strikes that resulted in 16

human fatalities (Table 16). Five of these strikes resulting in 7 fatalities involved

unidentified species of birds. American white pelicans, Canada geese, white-tailed deer

and brown-pelicans were responsible for the other 9 fatalities. Reports were received of

167 strikes that resulted in 209 human injuries. Waterfowl (ducks and geese; 40 strikes,

45 humans injured), vultures (24 strikes, 26 injuries), and deer (18 strikes, 25 injuries)

caused 82 (62 percent) of the 132 strikes resulting in injuries in which the species or

species group was identified (Table 16).

AIRCRAFT DESTROYED DUE TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

For the 19-year period, reports were received of 49 aircraft destroyed or damaged

beyond repair due to wildlife strikes (Tables 11, 12, 17). The majority (63 percent) were

small (<2,250 kg maximum takeoff

mass) general aviation (GA)

aircraft. Terrestrial mammals

(primarily white-tailed deer) were

responsible for 25 (51 percent) of

the incidents. Canada geese (4

incidents) and vultures (3

incidents) were responsible for 7

(60 percent) of the 14 incidents

involving birds in which the

species or species group was

identified.

Thirty-three (67 percent) of the 49

wildlife strikes resulting in a

destroyed aircraft occurred at

General Aviation (GA) airports, 9

occurred away from an airport, 6

occurred at USA airports

certificated for passenger service

under 14 CFR Part 139, and 1

occurred at a foreign airport certificated for passenger service (Table 17). GA airports,

This Piper 28 aircraft was damaged beyond repair

after striking a white-tailed deer on landing roll at a

General Aviation airport in the northeastern USA,

September 2008. This was 1 of 6 U.S. civil aircraft

destroyed in 2008 after striking wildlife.
10

often located in rural areas with inadequate fencing to exclude large mammals, face

unique challenges in mitigating wildlife risks to aviation (DeVault et al. 2008; Dolbeer et

al. 2008).

ECONOMIC LOSSES DUE TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

For the 19-year period, reported

losses from bird strikes totaled

393,521 hours of aircraft downtime

and $308.3 million in monetary losses.

Reported losses from terrestrial

mammal strikes totaled 244,068 hours

of aircraft downtime and $38.8 million

in monetary losses. Bat strikes

resulted in 100 hours of aircraft

downtime and $3.2 million in losses.

Reptile strikes resulted in 3 hours of

aircraft downtime (Table 14).

Of the 15,179 reports that indicated

the strike had an adverse effect on the

aircraft and/or flight, 4,301 provided

an estimate of the aircraft down time

( = 637,692 hours, avg. = 148.3

hours down time/incident, Table 18).

Of the reports providing a damage

cost estimate for the incident; 2,620

gave an estimate of the direct aircraft

damage cost ( = $308.6 million,

avg. = $117,787 damage/incident), and 1,157 gave an estimate of other monetary

losses ( = $41.7 million, avg. = $36,003 lost/incident). Other monetary losses include

such expenses as lost revenue, the cost of putting passengers in hotels, re-scheduling

aircraft, and flight cancellations.

Analysis of 14 groups of strike reports from 3 USA airports and 3 airlines for the years

1991-2004 indicated that about 20 percent of all strikes were reported to the FAA

(Cleary et al. 2005, Wright and Dolbeer 2005). Additionally, only 28 percent of the

15,179 reports from 1990-2008 indicating an adverse effect provided estimates of

aircraft downtime, 17 percent provided estimates of direct costs, and 8 percent provided

estimates of other (indirect) costs (Table 18). Furthermore, many reports providing cost

estimates were filed before aircraft damage and downtime had been fully assessed. As

a result, the information on the number of strikes and associated costs compiled from

the voluntary reporting program (summarized by species of wildlife struck in Table 14) is

believed to severely underestimate the magnitude of the problem.

A Challenger 600 struck several American white

pelicans at 3,000 feet AGL during climb from a

Colorado airport, April 2008. One bird

penetrated the nose of aircraft and entered the

cockpit. Both engines ingested birds and 1

engine lost power. Pilot was able to return and

land safely. Repair costs exceeded $2 million.
11

Assuming (1) all 15,179 reported wildlife strikes that had an adverse effect on the

aircraft and/or flight engendered similar amounts of downtime and/or monetary losses

and (2) that these reports are all of the damaging strikes that occurred, then at a

minimum, wildlife strikes cost the USA civil aviation industry 118,448 hours per year of

aircraft downtime and $123 million in monetary losses ($94 million per year in direct

costs and $29 million per year in associated costs, Table 18).

Further, assuming a 20 percent

reporting rate, the annual cost of

wildlife strikes to the USA civil

aviation industry is estimated to be

592,000 hours of aircraft downtime

and $614 million in monetary

losses ($470 million per year in

direct costs and $144 million per

year in associated costs, Table

18).

CONCLUSIONS

An analysis of 19 years of strike

data reveals the magnitude and

severity of the wildlife-aircraft strike

problem for civil aviation in the

USA. Wildlife strikes continue to

pose a significant economic and

safety risk for civil aviation in the

USA. Management actions to

reduce wildlife strikes are being implemented at many airports (e.g., Wenning et al.

2004, DeFusco et al. 2005, Dolbeer 2006a, Human Wildlife Conflicts Journal 2009), and

these efforts may be responsible, at least in part, for the general decline in reported

strikes with damage from 2000-2008 (Figure 2). For example, USDA/APHIS/WS

biologists provided assistance at 764 airports nationwide in 2008 to mitigate wildlife risks

to aviation compared to only 42 airports in 1991 and 193 in 1998 (Begier and Dolbeer

2009). However, much work remains to be done to reduce wildlife strikes.

To address the problem, airport managers first need to assess the wildlife hazards on

their airports with the help of qualified airport biologists (FAA Advisory Circular

150/5200-36). They then must take appropriate actions, under the guidance of

professional biologists trained in wildlife damage management at airports, to minimize

the risks posed by wildlife. The aviation community must also widen its view of wildlife

management to consider habitats and land uses in proximity to the airport. Wetlands,

dredge-spoil containment areas, waste-disposal facilities, and wildlife refuges can attract

hazardous wildlife. Such land uses, as discussed in FAA Advisory Circular 150/5200-

33b, are often incompatible with aviation safety and should either be prohibited near

A biologist attaches vinyl strips to the top of a culvert

that runs under a runway at a U.S. Air Force base in

Oklahoma, 2008. The strips deter swallows from

entering the culvert to build nests on the walls. Photo

by USDA.
12

airports or designed and operated in a manner that minimizes the attraction of

hazardous wildlife.

The manual Wildlife Hazard Management at Airports (Cleary and Dolbeer 2005)

provides guidance to airport personnel and biologists for conducting wildlife hazard

assessments and in developing and implementing wildlife hazard management plans.

Adobe Acrobat© PDF versions of the manual are available online in English, Spanish,

and French at http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov.

Finally, there is a need for increased and more detailed reporting of wildlife strikes.

Previous analyses (Cleary et al. 2005, Wright and Dolbeer 2005) indicated less than 20

percent of all wildlife strikes involving USA civil aircraft were reported; new information

indicates that approximately 39% of wildlife strikes are now reported (Dolbeer

unpublished data 2009). Although the quantity of strike reporting is higher more detail is

needed. Approximately, 44 percent of all reported bird strikes for 1990-2008, provided

information on the type of bird struck, and only about 28 percent of the reports identified

the birds struck to species level. In addition, only 17 percent of strike reports indicating

an adverse effect on the aircraft or flight provided at least a partial estimate of economic

losses resulting from the strike. Increased levels of reporting are positive; however,

these types of detailed information can be used to more effectively mitigate wildlife

hazards to aviation at the nation’s airports.

REPORTING A STRIKE AND IDENTIFYING SPECIES OF WILDLIFE STRUCK

Pilots, airport operations, aircraft maintenance personnel, and anyone else having

knowledge of a strike should report the incident to the FAA using FAA Form 5200-7.

Strikes can be reported electronically via the internet (http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov)

or Form 5200-7 can be accessed and printed for mailing in reports.

It is important to include as much information as possible on FAA Form 5200-7. All

reports are carefully screened to identify duplicate reports prior to being entered into the

database. Reports of the same incident filed by different people are combined and often

provide a more complete record of the strike event than would be possible if just one

report were filed.

The identification of the exact species of wildlife struck (e.g., ring-billed gull, Canada

goose, mallard, mourning dove, or red-tailed hawk as opposed to gull, goose, duck,

dove, or hawk) is particularly important. This species information is critical for biologists

developing and implementing wildlife risk management programs at airports because a

problem that cannot be measured or defined cannot be solved. Bird strike remains that

cannot be identified by airport personnel can often be identified by a local biologist

trained in ornithology or by sending feather and other remains in a sealed plastic bag

(with FAA Form 5200-7) to:
13

Material sent via Express Mail Service: Material sent via U.S. Postal Service:

Feather Identification Lab Feather Identification Lab

Smithsonian Institution NMNH Smithsonian Institution, NMNH

E600, MRC 116 E600, MRC 116

10th & Constitution Ave. NW P.O. Box 37012

Washington, D.C. 20560-0116 Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

(label package “safety investigation material”) (not recommended for priority cases)

Phone #s 202-633-0787 or 202-633-0791

Please send whole feathers whenever possible as diagnostic characteristics are often

found in the downy barbules at the feather base. Wings, as well as breast and tail

feathers should be sent whenever possible. Beaks, feet, bones, and talons are also

useful diagnostic materials. Even blood smears can provide material for DNA analysis

(Dove et al. 2008). Do not send entire bird carcasses through the mail. However,

photographs of the carcasses can be very useful supplemental documentation.

Additional information on sending bird remains to the Smithsonian is available at:

http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov.

Scientists at the Smithsonian Feather Lab

identify bird species involved in strikes by

various techniques, depending on the

amount and type of remains recovered. In

this photo, whole feather characters are

compared with museum specimens. In

other situations, microscope slides are

made of minute, fragmented material to

look for diagnostic characters found in the

downy barbules at the base of feathers.

Also, mitochondrial DNA can often be

extracted from organic remains and

compared with species profiles in the

Barcode of Life Database (Dove et al.

2008). Finally, photos of the carcass and

information on the location, season, and

time of day when the strike occurred can

be useful in identification. Photo courtesy

of Smithsonian Institution.
14

LITERATURE CITED

Adams, K., J. Hamilton and M. Ross. 2009. Quality Deer Management Association

Whitetail Report 2009. 68 pages.

Begier, M. J., and R. A. Dolbeer. 2009. Protecting the flying public and minimizing

economic losses within the aviation industry: technical, operational, and research

assistance provided by USDA-APHIS-Wildlife Services to reduce wildlife hazards to

aviation, Fiscal year 2008. Special report, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal

and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services. Washington D.C. USA. 13

pages.

Burger, J. 1983. Jet aircraft noise and bird strikes: why more birds are being hit.

Environmental Pollution (Series A) 30:143–152.

Cleary, E. C., and R. A. Dolbeer. 2005. Wildlife hazard management at airports, a

manual for airport operators. Second edition. Federal Aviation Administration, Office

of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, D.C. USA. 348 pages. (http://wildlifemitigation.tc.faa.gov).

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 1996. Wildlife strikes to civilian aircraft

in the United States, 1993–1995. Serial Report Number 2. DOT/FAA/AAS/97-1.

Federal Aviation Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington,

D.C. USA. 33 pages.

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 1997. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1992–1996. Serial Report Number 3. DOT/FAA/AAS/97-3.

Federal Aviation Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington,

D.C. USA. 30 pages.

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 1998. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1991–1997. Serial Report Number 4. Federal Aviation

Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, D.C. USA. 34

pages.

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 1999. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1990–1998. Serial Report Number 5. Federal Aviation

Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, D.C. USA. 33

pages.

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 2000. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1990–1999. Serial Report Number 6. Federal Aviation

Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, D.C. USA. 61

pages.
15

Cleary, E. C., S. E. Wright, and R. A. Dolbeer. 2002a. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1990–2000. Serial Report Number 7. Federal Aviation

Administration, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, D.C. USA. 37

pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2002b. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in

the United States, 1990–2001. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 8, DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 50 pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2003. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

United States, 1990–2002. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 9 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 51 pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2004. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

United States, 1990–2003. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 10 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 54 pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2005. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

United States, 1990–2004. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 11 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 53 pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2006. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

United States, 1990–2005. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 12 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 64 pages.

Cleary, E. C., R. A. Dolbeer, and S. E. Wright. 2007. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

United States, 1990–2006. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 13 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 59 pages.

DeFusco, R. P., M. J. Hovan, J. T. Harper, and K. A. Heppard. 2005. North American

Bird Strike Advisory System, Strategic Plan. Institute for Information Technology

Applications, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado USA. 31 pages.

DeVault, T. L., J. E. Kubel, D. J. Glista, and O. E. Rhodes, Jr. 2008. Mammalian

hazards at small airports in Indiana: impact of perimeter fencing. Human-Wildlife

Conflicts 2(2):240-247.

Dolbeer, R. A. 2000. Birds and aircraft: fighting for airspace in crowded skies. Pages

37-43 in Proceedings of 19th Vertebrate Pest Conference, University of California,

Davis, California, USA.
16

Dolbeer, R. A. 2006a. Birds and aircraft compete for space in crowded skies. ICAO

Journal 61(3):21-24. International Civil Aviation Organization. Montreal, Canada.

Dolbeer, R. A. 2006b. Height distribution of birds recorded by collisions with aircraft.

Journal of Wildlife Management 70 (5): 1345-1350.

Dolbeer, R. A., S. E. Wright, and P. Eschenfelder. 2005. Animal ambush at the airport:

the need to broaden ICAO standards for bird strikes to include terrestrial wildlife.

Pages 102-113 in Proceedings of the 27th International Bird Strike Committee

meeting (Volume 1). Athens, Greece.

Dolbeer, R. A., M. J. Begier, and S. E. Wright. 2008. Animal ambush: the challenge of

managing wildlife hazards at general aviation airports. Proceedings of the 53rd

Annual Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar, 30 April-1 May 2008, Palm Harbor,

Florida. Flight Safety Foundation, Alexandria, Virginia, USA.

Dolbeer, R. A. and P. Eschenfelder. 2003. Amplified bird-strike risks related to

population increases of large birds in North America. Pages 49-67 in Proceedings of

the 26th International Bird Strike Committee meeting (Volume 1). Warsaw, Poland.

Dolbeer R. A., and J. L. Seubert. 2009. Canada goose populations and strikes with civil

aircraft, 1990-2008: challenging trends for aviation industry. Special report, U.S.

Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program,

Washington, D.C., March 2009.

Dolbeer, R. A., and S. E. Wright. 2008. Wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the United

States, 1990–2007. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation

Administration, Serial Report No. 14 DOT/FAA/AS/00-6(AAS-310). Washington D.C.

USA. 57 pages.

Dolbeer, R. A., S. E. Wright, and E. C. Cleary. 1995. Bird and other wildlife strikes to

civilian aircraft in the United States, 1994. Interim report, DTFA01-91-Z-02004. U.S.

Department of Agriculture, for Federal Aviation Administration, FAA Technical Center,

Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA. 38 pages.

Dolbeer, R. A., S. E. Wright, and E. C. Cleary. 2000. Ranking the hazard level of

wildlife species to aviation. Wildlife Society Bulletin 28:372–378.

Dove C. J., N. Rotzel, M. Heacker, and L. A. Weigt. 2008. Using DNA barcodes to

identify bird species involved in birdstrikes. Journal of Wildlife Management 72:1231–

1236.

Dove C. J., N. F. Dahlan, and M. Heacker. 2009. Forensic birdstrike identification

techniques used in an accident investigation at Wiley Post Airport, Oklahoma, 2008.

Human Wildlife Conflicts 3(2): 179–185.
17

Federal Aviation Administration. 2009. Terminal area forecast (TAF) system. Federal

Aviation Administration. Washington, D.C. USA. (http://aspm.faa.gov/main/taf.asp).

Hubbard, M. W., B. J. Danielson, and R. A. Schmitz. 2000. Factors influencing the

location of deer-vehicle accidents in Iowa. Journal of Wildlife Management 64:707-

713.

Human Wildlife Conflicts Journal. 2009. Special edition on bird strikes. Volume 3,

Issue 2. Berryman Institute, Utah State University, Logan Utah USA

(http://www.berrymaninstitute.org).

International Civil Aviation Organization. 1989. Manual on the ICAO Bird Strike

Information System (IBIS). Third Edition. Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

International Civil Aviation Organization. 1993. Convention on international civil aviation

(international standards and recommended practices). Annex 16: Environmental

Protection. Third edition. Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Kelly, T. C., R. Bolger, and M. J. A. O’Callaghan. 1999. The behavioral response of

birds to commercial aircraft. Pages 77-82 in Bird Strike ’99, Proceedings of Bird

Strike Committee-USA/Canada Meeting. Vancouver, B.C., Canada: Transport

Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

MacKinnon, B., R. Sowden, and S. Dudley, (editors). 2001. Sharing the skies: an

aviation guide to the management of wildlife hazards. Transport Canada, Aviation

Publishing Division, AARA, 5th Floor, Tower C, 330 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario,

K1A 0N8, Canada. 316 pages.

Marra, P. P., C. J. Dove, R. A. Dolbeer, N. F. Dahlan, M. Heacker, J. F. Whatton, N. E.

Diggs, C. France, and G. A. Henkes. 2009. Migratory Canada geese cause crash of

US Airways Flight 1549. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 7(6): 297-301.

McCabe, T. R., and R. E. McCabe. 1997. Recounting whitetails past. Pages 11–26 in

W. J. McShea, H. B. Underwood, and J. H. Rappole (editors). The science of

overabundance: deer ecology and population management. Smithsonian Institution.

Washington D.C. USA. 402 pages.

National Transportation Safety Board. 2009. Fourth update on investigation into

ditching of US Airways jetliner into Hudson River. NTSB Advisory, 12 February 2009.

National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, DC USA.

(http://www.ntsb.gov/Pressrel/2009/090212b.html).

Richardson, W. J., and T. West. 2000. Serious birdstrike accidents to military aircraft:

updated list and summary. Pages 67–98 in Proceedings of 25th International Bird

Strike Committee Meeting. Amsterdam, Netherlands.
18

Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2008. The North American Breeding Bird

Survey, results and analysis 1966 - 2007. Version 5.15.2008. U.S. Geological

Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, Maryland, USA. (http://www.mbrpwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/bbs.html).

Thorpe, J. 2003. Fatalities and destroyed aircraft due to bird strikes, 1912–2002. Pages

85–113 in Proceedings of the 26th International Bird Strike Committee Meeting

(Volume 1). Warsaw, Poland.

Thorpe, J. 2005. Fatalities and destroyed aircraft due to bird strikes, 2002-2004 (with an

appendix of animal strikes). Pages 17-24 in Proceedings of the 27th International Bird

Strike Committee Meeting (Volume 1). Athens, Greece.

U.S. Department of Transportation. 2009. National Transportation Statistics. Table 1-

13: Active U.S. Air Carrier and General Aviation Fleet by Type of Aircraft Research

and Innovative Technology Administration.. Washington D.C. USA).

http://www.bts.gov/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_01_13.ht

ml

Wenning, K. M., M. J. Begier, and R. A. Dolbeer. 2004. Wildlife hazard management at

airports: fifteen years of growth and progress for Wildlife Services. Pages 295-301 in

Proceedings of 21st Vertebrate Pest Conference, University of California, Davis,

California, USA.

Wright, S. E. and R. A. Dolbeer. 2005. Percentage of wildlife strikes reported and

species identified under a voluntary system. in Proceedings of Bird Strike Committee

USA/Canada meeting, Vancouver, B.C. Canada (http://www.birdstrikecanada.com).
19

TABLES

Table 1. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by wildlife group, USA,

1990–2008 (see Figure 1)1.

Number of reported strikes-all aircraft Commercial aircraft only1

Year Birds Bats

Terrestrial

mammals2

Reptiles2 Total Total

Movements

(x 1

million)3

Strikes/

10,000

movements

1990 1,738 4 17 0 1,759 1,322 23.29 0.568

1991 2,252 3 36 0 2,291 1,769 24.80 0.713

1992 2,351 2 56 1 2,410 1,800 25.20 0.714

1993 2,395 6 53 0 2,454 1,779 25.59 0.695

1994 2,459 2 73 1 2,535 1,905 26.61 0.716

1995 2,643 5 69 8 2,725 2,019 27.07 0.746

1996 2,840 1 91 3 2,935 2,087 27.60 0.756

1997 3,351 1 92 14 3,458 2,457 27.79 0.884

1998 3,656 3 105 7 3,771 2,521 28.03 0.899

1999 5,001 7 89 1 5,098 3,849 28.77 1.338

2000 5,873 16 120 3 6,012 4,482 29.56 1.516

2001 5,647 8 137 8 5,801 4,164 29.17 1.427

2002 6,047 19 116 15 6,197 4,406 27.64 1.594

2003 5,853 20 124 5 6,003 4,283 27.92 1.534

2004 6,399 27 118 6 6,550 4,685 28.90 1.621

2005 7,076 27 130 7 7,240 5,170 29.26 1.767

2006 7,042 49 140 9 7,240 4,915 28.32 1.736

2007 7,507 53 167 7 7,734 4,998 28.48 1.755

2008 7,286 46 179 5 7,516 4,543 27.93 1.626

Total 87,416 299 1,912 100 89,727 63,154 521.91 1.210

1 See Table 4.

2

For terrestrial mammals and reptiles, species with body masses <1 kilogram (2.2 lbs) are

excluded from database (Dolbeer et al. 2005).

3 Departures and arrivals by air carrier, commuter, and air taxi service (Federal Aviation

Administration 2009).
20

Table 2. Source of information for reported wildlife strikes to civil

aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Source

19-year

total

% of total

known

FAA Form 5200-71(Paper) 38,910 43

FAA Form 5200-7E2(Electronic) 20,910 23

Airline report 13,120 15

Multiple3 7,703 9

Airport report 4,413 5

Other4 1,184 1

Preliminary Aircraft Incident Report 888 1

Engine manufacturer 830 1

Aircraft Incident Report 780 1

Daily report (FAA) 659 1

Aviation Safety Reporting System 183 0

National Transportation Safety Board 78 0

Aircraft Incident Preliminary Notice 69 0

Total 89,727 100

1 Bird/Other Wildlife Strike Report

2 Electronic filing of reports (http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov) began in April

2001. In 2001, 0.4 percent of reports were filed electronically compared to 20,

28, 32, 37, 46, 62, and 68 percent in 2002-2008, respectively.

3 More than one type of report was filed for the same strike.

4 Various sources, such as news media and Commercial Incident Reports.
21

Table 3. Person filing report of wildlife strike to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Person filing report

19-year

total

% of total

known

Airline Operations 21,285 29

Pilot 17,364 24

Carcass Found114,220 20

Tower 9,126 13

Airport Operations 8,546 12

Other 1,969 3

Total known 72,510 100

Unknown 17,217

Total 89,727

1 Airport personnel found wildlife remains within 200 feet of a runway centerline that appeared to

have been struck by aircraft and no strike was reported by pilot, tower, or airline.

Table 4. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by type of operator, USA,

1990–2008.

Type of operator

19-year

total

% of total

known

Commercial 63,154 85

Business 8,339 11

Private 1,984 3

Government/Police1442 1

Total known 73,919 100

Unknown 15,808

Total 89,727

1 U.S. Coast Guard aircraft were involved in 144 of these strikes.
22

Table 5. Number of reported bird, bat, terrestrial mammal, and reptile strikes to civil aircraft by USA state,

including the District of Columbia (DC), Puerto Rico (PR), USA-possessed Pacific Islands (PI), and the

U.S. Virgin Islands (VI), 1990–2008.

Reported strikes (19-year total) Reported strikes (19-year total)

State Birds Bats

T. mammalsReptiles Total State Birds BatsT. mammalsReptiles Total

AK 621 1 29 0 651 NC 1,445 2 30 0 1,477

AL 683 2 11 0 696 ND 286 0 14 0 300

AR 323 1 15 0 339 NE 936 7 16 0 959

AZ 1,377 32 63 0 1,472 NH 468 7 7 0 482

CA 7,442 3 112 0 7,557 NJ 2,389 3 92 11 2,495

CO 2,836 9 106 0 2,951 NM 220 0 27 0 247

CT 906 1 20 0 927 NV 438 0 8 0 446

DC 1,946 4 43 0 1,993 NY 4,732 8 142 23 4,905

DE 67 0 1 0 68 OH 2,894 8 85 0 2,987

FL 5,571 9 72 48 5,700 OK 804 1 30 5 840

GA 1,326 2 32 0 1,360 OR 1,481 2 9 0 1,492

HI 1,982 0 8 0 1,990 PA 2,769 4 80 0 2,853

IA 646 2 19 0 667 PI 156 0 0 0 156

ID 228 0 8 0 236 PR 151 2 0 5 158

IL 3,958 5 100 1 4,064 RI 366 1 13 0 380

IN 1,128 2 24 0 1,154 SC 394 0 19 0 413

KS 263 1 7 0 271 SD 176 0 13 1 190

KY 2,222 4 17 0 2,243 TN 2,591 2 20 0 2,613

LA 1,446 5 20 2 1,473 TX 5,963 88 108 1 6,160

MA 1,149 1 24 0 1,174 UT 1,109 3 19 0 1,131

MD 962 6 62 0 1,030 VA 1,086 3 59 0 1,148

ME 262 0 12 0 274 VI 95 0 0 0 95

MI 2,128 11 85 1 2,225 VT 101 0 3 0 104

MN 869 10 24 0 903 WA 1,341 2 18 0 1,361

MO 1,979 9 35 0 2,023 WI 788 3 53 0 844

MS 274 0 9 0 283 WV 187 0 50 0 237

MT 129 0 9 0 138 WY 78 0 6 0 84

Total known1

76,167 266 1,888 98 78,419

Foreign2

1,828 10 9 0 1,847

Unknown 9,421 23 15 2 9,461

Total 87,416 299 1,912 100 89,727

1 Strikes were reported at 1,456 airports in the USA.

2 Strikes to USA air carriers were reported at 215 foreign airports.
23

Table 6. Number of reported bird and terrestrial mammal strikes to civil aircraft by

month, USA, 1990–20081.

All birds All terrestrial mammals Deer only2

Month

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

Jan 3,289 4 108 6 39 5

Feb 2,931 3 89 5 33 4

Mar 4,639 5 123 6 40 5

Apr 6,202 7 117 6 45 6

May 8,322 10 109 6 34 4

Jun 6,651 8 164 9 54 7

Jul 10,107 12 199 10 70 9

Aug 11,767 13 226 12 81 10

Sep 11,753 13 196 10 78 10

Oct 11,118 13 236 12 102 13

Nov 6,621 8 238 12 151 19

Dec 4,016 5 107 6 55 7

Total 87,416 100 1,912 100 782 100

1

In addition, 299 strikes with bats were reported of which 55 percent occurred in July -

September; 100 strikes with reptiles were reported of which 64 percent occurred in May -

August.

2 Deer strikes were comprised of 729 white-tailed deer, 37 mule deer, and 16 deer not

identified to species. Other wild artiodactyls struck (but not included in this column of table)

were 9 wapiti (elk), 7 pronghorns, 4 moose, 2 caribou, 1 swine (feral hog) and 2 collared

peccaries (Table 14).
24

Table 7. Reported time of occurrence of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–20081.

Birds Terrestrial mammals

Time of day

19-year

total

% of total

known

19-year

total

% of total

known

Dawn 2,422 4 38 3

Day 35,633 62 277 23

Dusk 3,010 5 111 9

Night 16,449 29 757 64

Total known 57,514 100 1,183 100

Unknown 29,902 729

Total187,416 1,912

1

In addition, 299 strikes with bats were reported: time not reported (224), night (58), dusk

(6), day (9), and dawn (2). Also, 100 strikes with reptiles were reported: time not reported

(83), day (10), night (4), dusk (2), and dawn (1).
25

Table 8. Reported phase of flight at time of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–20081.

Birds Terrestrial mammals

Phase of flight

19-year

total

% of total

known

19-year

total

% of total

known

Parked 33 <1 1 <1

Taxi 244 <1 32 2

Takeoff run 12,289 19 450 34

Climb 11,547 18 29 2

En route 1,532 2 0 0

Descent 2,422 4 0 0

Approach 24,941 39 88 7

Landing roll 10,538 17 721 55

Total known 63,546 100 1,321 100

Unknown 23,870 591

Total187,416 1,912

1

In addition, 299 strikes with bats were reported: phase of flight not reported (226), approach

(45), climb (8), descent (5), landing roll (10), en route (2), and takeoff run (3). Also, 99 strikes

with reptiles were reported: phase of flight not reported (75), taxi (5), takeoff run (11), approach

(4; pilot had a missed approach because reptile was on the runway), and landing roll (5).
26

Table 9. Number of reported bird strikes to civil aircraft by height (feet) above ground

level (AGL), USA, 1990–20081.

All reported strikes Strikes with damage

Height

of strike

(feet AGL)

19-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

19-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

0 23,118 41 41 1,900 26 26

1-100 10,277 18 59 1,194 17 43

101-200 2,700 5 64 338 5 48

201-300 1,746 3 67 223 3 51

301-400 1,074 2 69 166 2 53

401-500 1,936 3 72 274 4 57

501-600 550 1 73 105 1 58

601-700 438 1 74 76 1 59

701-800 875 2 76 173 2 61

801-900 281 1 77 72 1 62

901-1,000 1,674 3 80 336 5 67

1,001-2,000 4,083 7 87 926 13 80

2,001-3,000 2,636 5 92 558 8 88

3,001-4,000 1,376 2 94 227 3 91

4,001-5,000 981 2 96 173 2 93

5,001-10,000 1,845 3 99 347 5 98

10,001-15,000 314 1 100 86 1 99

15,001-20,000 35 <1 100 21 <1 99

20,001-30,000 15 <1 100 9 <1 99

32,500 1 <1 100 1 <1 99

Total known 55,955 100 7,205 100

Unknown height 31,461 2,428

Total 87,416 9,633

1 A more detailed analysis of bird strikes by height AGL is provided by Dolbeer (2006b).
27

Table 10. Civil aircraft components reported as being struck and damaged by wildlife, USA,

1990–2008.

Birds (19-year total) Terrestrial mammals (19-year total)

Aircraft

component

Number

struck

% of

total

Number

damaged

% of

total

Number

struck

% of

total

Number

damaged

% of

total

Windshield 13,557 17 673 6 7 <1 13 1

Engine(s)111,616 15 3,596 32 131 8 140 10

Nose 11,361 14 674 6 78 4 78 6

Wing/rotor 10,510 13 2,594 23 199 11 209 15

Fuselage 9,947 12 435 4 106 6 117 8

Radome 9,925 12 1,114 10 13 1 14 1

Other 5,678 7 856 8 207 12 183 13

Landing gear 3,592 4 356 3 704 40 317 23

Propeller 2,049 3 206 2 224 13 213 15

Tail 1,078 1 453 4 48 3 63 5

Light 590 1 456 4 26 1 33 2

Total279,903 100 11,413 100 1,743 100 1,380 100

1 For birds, 11,616 engines were reported as struck in 11,060 strike events involving engines (10,525

events with one engine struck, 518 with two engines struck, 12 with three engines struck, and 5 with

four engines struck). A total of 3,596 engines was damaged in 3,484 bird-strike events with engine

damage (3,375 events with one engine damaged, 107 with two engines damaged, 1 with three engines

damaged, and 1 with 4 engines damaged). For terrestrial mammals, 131 engines were reported as

struck in 122 strike events (113 events with one engine struck and 9 with two engines struck). A total of

140 engines was damaged in 124 terrestrial mammal strike events with engine damage (108 events

with one engine damaged and 16 with two engines damaged). Some engines were damaged without

being struck when the landing gear collapsed.

2

In addition, bat strikes had 95 and 7 components reported as struck and damaged, respectively:

radome/nose (27, 0), windshield (20, 0), engine (11, 3), propeller (1, 0), wing/rotor (12, 3), fuselage (8,

0), tail (2, 0), other (9, 0), landing gear (4, 0), light (1, 1). For reptile strikes, there were 20 and 5

components reported struck and damaged, respectively: windshield (1, 1), wing/rotor (1, 1), fuselage (1,

1), landing gear (15, 0); tail (1, 1), other (1, 1).
28

Table 11. Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from wildlife strikes, USA,

1990–2008.

Reported strikes

Birds Terrestrial mammals Total1

Damage

category2

19-year

total

% of total

known

19-year

total

% of total

known

19-year

total

% of total

known

None 59,047 86 508 41 59,655 85

Damage 9,606 14 738 59 10,352 15

Minor 5,112 7 324 26 5,439 8

Uncertain 2,015 3 58 5 2,074 3

Substantial 2,455 4 331 27 2,790 4

Destroyed 24 <1 25 2 49 <1

Total known 68,653 100 1,246 100 70,007 100

Unknown 18,763 666 19,720

Total 87,416 1,912 89,727

1

Included in totals are 299 and 100 strikes involving bats and reptiles, respectively. For bats, 85

reports indicated no damage, 207 failed to report if damage occurred, 3 reported minor damage, 1

reported uncertain level of damage, and 3 reported substantial damage. For reptiles, 15 reports

indicated no damage, 84 failed to report if damage occurred, and 1 reported substantial damage.

2 The damage codes and descriptions follow the International Civil Aviation Organization Bird Strike

Information System (1989): Minor = the aircraft can be rendered airworthy by simple repairs or

replacements and an extensive inspection is not necessary; Uncertain = the aircraft was damaged,

but details as to the extent of the damage are lacking; Substantial = the aircraft incurs damage or

structural failure that adversely affects the structure strength, performance, or flight characteristics

of the aircraft and that would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected

component (specifically excluded are bent fairings or cowlings; small dents or puncture holes in the

skin; damage to wing tips, antenna, tires, or brakes; and engine blade damage not requiring blade

replacement); Destroyed = the damage sustained makes it inadvisable to restore the aircraft to an

airworthy condition.
29

Table 12. Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from bird and

terrestrial mammal strikes by year, USA, 1990–20081, 2.

Strikes with damage

(birds)

Strikes with damage

(terrestrial mammals)

Year

Minor

or uncertain

level

SubstantialDestroyed Total

Minor

or uncertain

level

SubstantialDestroyed Total

1990 224 103 327 3 8 1 12

1991 238 126 364 5 12 17

1992 204 106 3 313 17 22 1 40

1993 262 94 356 20 9 2 31

1994 268 135 4 407 29 14 1 44

1995 283 165 448 23 14 37

1996 278 170 448 28 26 2 56

1997 353 167 520 32 25 1 58

1998 400 131 2 533 34 16 3 53

1999 498 156 654 20 22 42

2000 551 153 1 705 33 23 56

2001 479 120 599 23 21 1 45

2002 511 120 1 632 13 22 1 36

2003 462 125 2 589 17 20 3 40

2004 439 133 572 20 18 3 41

2005 408 147 2 557 24 22 2 48

2006 441 119 560 17 13 2 32

2007 418 106 5 529 17 14 31

2008 410 79 4 493 7 10 2 19

Total 7,127 2,455 24 9,606 382 331 25 738

1

In addition, 7 strike reports involving bats indicated damage (3 substantial and 4 minor

or undetermined level). For reptiles, 1 strike report indicated substantial damage.

2 See Table 11 for definitions of damage levels.
30

Table 13. Reported effect-on-flight (EOF) of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–2008.

Reported strikes

Birds Terrestrial mammals Total1

Effect-on-flight2

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

None 45,517 88 478 48 46,083 87

Negative effect 6,390 12 525 52 6,924 13

Precautionary landing 3,283 6 79 8 3,365 6

Aborted takeoff 1,514 3 170 17 1,684 3

Engine shutdown 321 1 26 3 347 1

Other 1,272 2 250 25 1,528 3

Total known 51,907 100 1,003 100 53,007 100

Unknown 35,509 909 36,720

Total 87,416 1,912 89,727

1

Included in totals are 299 and 100 strikes involving bats and reptiles, respectively. For bats,

69 reports indicated no effect-on-flight, 228 failed to report if an effect-on-flight occurred, and 2

reported a precautionary landing. For reptiles, 19 reports indicated no effect-on-flight, 74 failed

to report if an effect-on-flight occurred, 1 reported a precautionary landing, and 6 reported

“other”.

2 Effect-on-flight: None = flight continued as scheduled, although delays and other cost caused

by inspections or repairs may have been incurred after landing; Aborted takeoff = pilot aborted

the takeoff; Precautionary landing = pilot landed at other-than-destination airport after strike;

Engine shut down = pilot shut down the engine or the engine stopped running because of strike;

Other = miscellaneous effects, such as reduced speed because of shattered windshield,

emergency landing at destination airport, or crash landing; Unknown = report did not give

sufficient information to determine an effect-on-flight (Dolbeer et al. 2000).
31

Table 14. Total reported strikes, strikes causing damage, strikes having a negative

effect-on-flight (EOF), strikes involving >1 animal, aircraft downtime, and costs by

identified wildlife species for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008 (page 1 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Birds

Loons 19 12 7 2,867 1,766,200

Loons 3 3 2 557 251,200

Common loon 15 8 4 2,262 1,513,000

Red-throated loon 1 1 1 48 2,000

Grebes 44 8 5 7 168 2,109,470

Grebes 8 1 1

Eared grebe 6 1 1 10 100,000

Western grebe 13 4 3 5 86 1,900,000

Pied-billed grebe 9 1

Horned grebe 5 2 1 72 109,470

Red-necked grebe 2

Clark’s grebe 1

Albatrosses/shearwaters 49 7 6 149 62,500

Laysan albatross 31 6 5 149 62,500

Black-footed albatross 4 1

Bonin petrel 1

Wedge-tailed shearwater 8 1

Townsend’s shearwater 4

Fork-tailed storm-petrel 1

Tropicbirds 11 8 7 172 75,300

Tropicbirds 5 5 4 124 40,200

White-tailed tropicbird 3 2 2 48 29,500

Red-tailed tropicbird 3 1 1 5,600

Pelicans 53 26 21 8 422 2,351,123

Pelicans 4 2 80

Australian pelican 1 1 1

Brown pelican 42 19 16 5 318 251,123

American white pelican 6 4 4 3 24 2,100,000

Red- footed booby 1

Cormorants 67 24 15 11 241 2,204,370

Cormorants 5

Great cormorant 2 1 2

D.-crested cormorant 59 23 15 9 241 2,204,370

Pelagic cormorant 1

Anhinga 15 5 6 3 117 7,800
32

Table 14. Continued (page 2 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Frigatebirds 11 4 2 21 18,400

Frigatebirds 2 1 1 18 13,500

Great frigatebird 7 2 1 3 4,900

Magnificent frigatebird 2 1

Herons/bitterns 360 67 48 12 3,426 4,861,610

Herons 47 13 9 4 99 3,200

Great blue heron 213 47 36 4 2,647 4,766,024

Blk-crowned night-heron 33 3 1 2 16 31,200

Little blue heron 4

Green heron 7

Yel.-crowned night heron 6 1 18 17,000

American bittern 5 3 2 646 44,186

Yellow bittern 45 2

Egrets 490 56 68 125 3,717 5,318,690

Egrets 268 30 39 76 3,455 3,465,140

Cattle egret 163 17 23 42 141 12,750

Great egret 38 7 6 6 97 1,840,800

Snowy egret 21 2 1 24

Storks/ibises 33 7 5 6 1

White stork 1 1

Wood stork 9 2 1 1

Ibises 11 1 2 1

Glossy ibis 1 1

White ibis 5 1 1 1

White-faced ibis 5 2 2

Roseate spoonbill 1 1 1

Waterfowl 3,175 1,418 694 1,159 110,135 101,332,546

Ducks, geese, swans 133 63 30 53 715 758,775

Ducks 663 228 105 217 5,221 4,024,921

American wigeon 24 13 5 7 327 888,089

Northern pintail 47 31 17 25 1396 1,309,044

Green-winged teal 22 9 6 7 732 688,142

Blue-winged teal 15 8 3 8 145 608,440

European wigeon 1 1

Mallard 473 120 60 107 8,479 5,129,911

Common eider 3 2 1 1

Ring-necked duck 8 4 2 3 240 46,468

Greater scaup 4 1 1 1
33

Table 14. Continued (page 3 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Wood duck 22 9 4 6 294 85,704

Muscovy duck 1 1 120 443,332

Common goldeneye 3 2 1 2,000

Red-breasted merganser 4 1 1 2

Hooded merganser 3 1 1

Common merganser 1 1 1 72 2,500

Northern shoveler 22 11 3 11 648 1,079,570

Gadwall 19 5 2 4 414 1,513,678

Canvasback 11 4 1 4 335 2,154,077

American black duck 27 3 1 8 36 1,500

Mottled duck 11 4 3 2 24

Lesser scaup 16 10 6 7 999 111,000

Ruddy duck 12 4 1 24 8,446

Redhead 3 1 1

Bufflehead 3

Long-tailed duck 2 2 1

Philippine duck 1 1 1 1 96 9,456,000

Blk.-bellied whistling duck 1

Cinnamon teal 2

White-winged scoter 1 1 1 1 1,400 430,000

Hawaiian duck 2

Geese 310 189 82 112 24,328 2,000,117

Snow goose 78 62 29 41 4,213 17,041,554

Canada goose 1,181 603 317 509 59,087 50,902,670

Brant 18 8 3 7 88 51,271

Gr. white-fronted goose 13 9 3 8 292 1,500,547

Emperor goose 1

Swans 2 1

Mute swan 5 1

Tundra swan 5 4 2 3 336 144,790

Trumpeter swan 2 2 2 1 72 950,000

Raptors 5,070 852 574 184 83,540 40,224,236

Hawks, eagles, vultures 29 16 7 1 2,559 17,550

Vultures 254 146 70 26 21,461 9,306,693

Black vulture 45 26 19 5 5,161 1,407,128

Turkey vulture 317 168 113 16 23,391 4,482,590

Osprey 148 36 22 3 2,268 292,923

White-tailed kite 12 3 1 40 5,000,000
34

Table 14. Continued (page 4 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Black kite 2 1 1

Swallow-tailed kite 1

Eagles 6 3 2 1

Bald eagle 111 48 29 9 6,209 384,140

Wh.-breasted sea eagle 1 1 1

Golden eagle 8 2 4 3,696 801,000

Hawks 975 195 138 25 9,241 3,865,084

Red-tailed hawk 965 160 116 16 8,434 5,721,618

Rough-legged hawk 34 1 1 167

Red-shouldered hawk 15 1 2 41 900

Swainson’s hawk 46 4 3 1 8

Sharp-shinned hawk 11

Cooper’s hawk 31 2 1

Ferruginous hawk 8 1 1 24 3,200,000

Broad-winged hawk 8 1

Harris’ hawk 2

Common buzzard 1 24

Northern harrier 65 2 1 1 200,000

Lappet-faced vulture 1 1 1 240 4,000,000

Falcons 37 3 3 1 81 30,000

Peregrine falcon 135 10 3 6 78 235,500

Gyrfalcon 1

Merlin 34 2 3 130

Crested caracara 4 2 1 2

Prairie falcon 8

American kestrel 1,751 18 31 73 579 1,278,813

Eurasian kestrel 4 1 1

Gallinaceous birds 150 40 33 28 1,820 612,287

Grouse 7 2 3 2

Greater sage grouse 5 3 4 1 337 256,077

Sharp-tailed grouse 1 1 1 24 500

Ptarmigans 6 4 1 2 57 57,500

Black francolin 2

Quails 10 2 2

Northern bobwhite 6 2 3 1 73 800

Scaled quail 3

Ring-necked pheasant 56 12 9 5 855 84,000

Partridges 1
35

Table 14. Continued (page 5 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Red-legged partridge 1

Gray partridge 5 2 1 3 24 120

Chukar 2 1 1

Grey francolin 1

Guineafowl 1 1 1

Wild turkey 43 13 11 9 448 213,290

Cranes 92 35 28 30 2,369 434,560

Cranes 12 3 5 2 31 250,000

Sandhill crane 79 31 23 28 2,290 134,260

Whooping crane 1 1 48 50,300

Rails/gallinules 86 18 8 6 1,013 957,926

Rails 3 1 1 1

Sora 3

Common moorhen 2 1 1 24 990

American coot 69 15 5 5 917 931,486

Purple gallinule 3 1 1 72 25,450

Virginia rail 2

Clapper rail 4

Shorebirds 2,604 68 99 446 1,317 3,024,581

Shorebirds 17 8

American oystercatcher 18 2

Plovers 39 3 4 8 24

European golden-plover 3

American golden-plover 49 1 3 16 16 2,000

Black-bellied plover 41 2 2 6 12 38,622

Snowy plover 1 1

Killdeer 1,421 31 40 150 288 2,386,113

Pacific golden-plover 472 3 9 77 35 2,200

Semipalmated plover 27 11

Wilson’s plover 1

Northern lapwing 1 1 1 1 25

Southern lapwing 1 1 1 8,000

Sandpipers 163 9 20 64 169 106,560

Upland sandpiper 97 4 6 12 12 1,000

Spotted sandpiper 6 2

Willett 5 2

Common snipe 28 2 1 3 12,615

American woodcock 23 1 2 3
36

Table 14. Continued (page 6 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Dunlin 14 3 2 5 504 205,300

Baird’s sandpiper 8 1

Western sandpiper 37 1 1 23 60 94,311

Pectoral sandpiper 4 1 2 300

Sanderling 15 1 8

Buff-breasted sandpiper 13 4

Ruddy turnstone 4

Least sandpiper 32 1 3 14 3

Semipalmated sandpiper 25 10

Lesser yellowlegs 3 1

Short-billed dowitcher 5 1 1

Hudsonian godwit 1 1 1 1 96 23,495

Solitary sandpiper 2 1

Greater yellowlegs 1

Long-billed dowitcher 4 2 1

Red knot 2

White-rumped sandpiper 1

Black turnstone 1

Marbled godwit 1 1 1 1 48 144,065

Curlews 1 1

Whimbrel 6 1 1 1 24

Long-billed curlew 3

Red-necked phalarope 2

American avocet 3 2

Black-necked stilt 3 2

Gulls/jaegers 7,470 1,169 935 1,791 48,320 35,839,010

Parasitic jaeger 1

Gulls 5,380 945 737 1,437 35,062 19,041,746

Herring gull 715 80 75 85 1,813 1,668,351

Mew gull 41 6 4 6 17 86,717

Ring-billed gull 805 81 71 168 4,955 2,898,660

Glaucous-winged gull 56 12 7 10 290 346,545

Great black-backed gull 67 7 5 4 27 250,000

Franklin’s gull 37 3 3 16 18 139,000

Laughing gull 233 16 18 41 731 534,136

Bonaparte’s gull 20 2 2 6 65,000

Lesser black-backed gull 1

Western gull 61 7 4 7 92 540,857
37

Table 14. Continued (page 7 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

California gull 44 7 6 6 4,859 361,948

Heermann’s gull 1 1

Thayer’s gull 3

Yellow-legged gull 3 3 3 3 456 9,906,050

Glaucous gull 2 1

Terns/kittiwakes 107 4 3 24 4

Terns 38 2 12

Caspian tern 17 1

Common tern 11 1

Gull-billed tern 1

Fairy tern 1

White tern 1 1 1

Arctic tern 3 1 2

Roseate tern 1

Forster’s tern 5 1 1 4

Least tern 7 2

Black noddy 3 2

Brown noddy 6 1 1

Royal tern 2

Sooty tern 1

Black-legged kittiwake 2

Red-legged kittiwake 1

Black skimmer 7 1 1

Pigeons/doves 5,590 341 400 1,447 22,388 11,250,886

Pigeons, doves 12 1 1 8 24 400

Pigeons 26 4 4 12 32 46,050

Doves 837 42 74 237 1,096 293,610

Rock pigeon 1,588 183 166 562 13,841 5,146,449

Racing pigeon (banded) 18 4 2 8 144 16,000

Mourning dove 2,893 102 148 604 7,117 5,473,972

Spotted dove 73 3 3 4 132 274,405

Zebra dove 101 2 2 12 2

Inca dove 14

Philippine turtle dove 4

White-winged dove 18

Common ground-dove 6

Parrots 12 1

Parrots 6 1
38

Table 14. Continued (page 8 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Budgerigar 5

Black-hooded parakeet 1

Cuckoos 11 1 3

Cuckoos 1 1

Yellow-billed cuckoo 9 1 2

Common cuckoo 1

Owls 1,168 81 53 9 1,465 4,026,013

Owls 252 29 15 4 960 296,875

Barn owl 504 23 19 4 248 1,900,310

Snowy owl 54 5 5 46 27,500

Short-eared owl 186 6 5 17 845

Long-eared owl 8 2 1

Northern saw-whet owl 4

Burrowing owl 66 1 1

Barred owl 7 1 1

Northern pygmy-owl 1

Eastern screech owl 2 1 24 7,558

Western screech owl 2

Great horned owl 82 13 7 1 169 1,792,925

Nightjars 163 2 9

Nightjars 4 1

Whip-poor-will 2

Common poorwill 6

Lesser nighthawk 6

Chuck-will’s-widow 1

Common nighthawk 144 1 9

Swifts 107 3 2 7

Swifts 9 1 2

Chimney swift 79 1 2 5

Vaux’s swift 11

White-throated swift 8 1

Hummingbirds 4

Hummingbirds 2

R.-throated hummingbird 1

Anna’s hummingbird 1

Belted kingfisher 7

Woodpeckers 48 2 4 1 1 15,000

Woodpeckers 9 1
39

Table 14. Continued (page 9 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Northern flicker 29 2

Yellow-bellied sapsucker 5 1 1

Hairy woodpecker 3

Red-naped sapsucker 1 1 15,000

Downy woodpecker 1 1 1

Flycatchers 121 1 4 9 1 9,800

Tyrant flycatchers 9 1 1

Eastern wood-pewee 3

Great crested flycatcher 1

Eastern kingbird 8 1 1 9,800

Scissor-tailed flycatcher 42 2 4

Acadian flycatcher 1

Say’s phoebe 2

Western kingbird 50 1 3

Ash-throated flycatcher 1

Western wood-pewee 1

Sulphur-bellied flycatcher 1

Eastern phoebe 1

Yellow-bellied flycatcher 1 1

Larks 902 10 14 225 62 505,625

Larks 5 1

Eurasian skylark 14 1

Horned lark 883 10 14 223 62 505,625

Swallows 1,964 15 39 472 137 37,522

Swallows 504 4 24 162 26

Purple martin 77 2 1 20 3

Bank swallow 90 2 3 42 5

Barn swallow 828 4 6 143 89 23,807

Cliff swallow 275 3 2 46 9 13,650

Tree swallow 169 3 58 5 65

Violet-green swallow 9 1

N. rough-winged swallow 12

Starlings/mynas 2,115 89 122 827 1,494 4,326,605

European starling 2,070 88 121 815 1,490 4,326,605

Mynas 4 2

Common myna 41 1 1 10 4

Crows/jays/magpies 509 53 47 75 6,609 1,478,158

Crows 218 22 21 34 905 144,000
40

Table 14. Continued (page 10 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

American crow 236 21 19 34 5,562 1,265,113

Carrion crow 1

Hooded crow 1 1 1

Northwestern crow 2 1

Blue jay 9

Common raven 26 7 4 2 141 68,490

Yellow-billed magpie 8 2

Black-billed magpie 8 2 2 2 1 555

Chickadees 21 1 7

Chickadees 5 1 2

Black-capped chickadee 13 2

Mountain chickadee 2 2

Gray-headed chickadee 1 1

Wrens 49 1 2 8

Wrens 39 1 1 8

Marsh wren 3 1

House wren 4

Carolina wren 1

Rock wren 1

Cactus wren 1

Mimics 76 1 2 3 120

Brown thrasher 8 120

Curve-billed thrasher 1

Northern mockingbird 45 1 2

Gray catbird 22 3

Thrushes 348 29 20 31 1,600 2,352,140

Thrushes 16 3 1 2 7 25,500

Western bluebird 2 3

Swainson’s thrush 16 2 1 2 1 2,000,025

American robin 283 20 15 25 1,565 313,630

Hermit thrush 10 1 22 3,800

Eastern bluebird 3

Gray-cheeked thrush 1

Varied thrush 13 3 2 1 2 8,905

Wood thrush 4 1 1 280

Kinglets 7

Golden-crowned kinglet 2

Ruby-crowned kinglet 5
41

Table 14. Continued (page 11 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Wrentits/gnatcatchers 2

Wrentit 1

Blue-gray gnatcatcher 1

Vireos 11 1 2

Vireos 2

Yellow-throated vireo 1

Warbling vireo 3 1

Red-eyed vireo 4 1 1

Cassin’s vireo 1

Warblers 98 3 4 6 164 343

Wood warblers 23 1

Canada warbler 3

Yellow-breasted chat 4

Pine warbler 2

Black and white warbler 3

Northern parula warbler 2

Ovenbird 7 1 2 1 100

Wilson’s warbler 6

Common yellowthroat 6

Yellow-rumped warbler 12 2 43

Blackpoll warbler 3 2 1 200

American redstart 1 3

Orange-crowned warbler 1

Yellow warbler 3 1 15

Northern waterthrush 2

Nashville warbler 7 1 2 1 144

Townsend’s warbler 1

Palm warbler 4

Magnolia warbler 4

Blk-throated blue warbler 2

Prothonotary warbler 1

MacGillivray’s warbler 1

Meadowlarks 882 10 19 102 228 266,452

Meadowlarks 208 2 6 16 10

Eastern meadowlark 400 3 5 38 4

Western meadowlark 274 5 8 48 214 266,452

Blackbirds/orioles 1,426 89 99 399 1,464 1,046,730

Blackbirds 1,066 73 78 323 587 862,825
42

Table 14. Continued (page 12 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Red-winged blackbird 89 2 6 13 7 750

Yellow-headed blackbird 6 1 1 1

Brewer’s blackbird 25 2

Brown-headed cowbird 75 1 2 25 6 5,155

Bobolink 6 1

Rusty blackbird 1

Orioles 5

Baltimore oriole 4 1

Orchard oriole 1

Bullock’s oriole 1

Grackles 71 5 3 18 720 133,000

Common grackle 58 5 6 14 123 45,000

Boat-tailed grackle 5 1 1 20

Great-tailed grackle 10 2

Scarlet tanager 2 1

Western tanager 1 1 1

Finches/buntings 288 5 22 112 76 9,000

Finches 53 5 15 4

Lapland longspur 6 3

Chest.-collared longspur 1

Dark-eyed junco 15 2 2 2 49 9,000

Rose-breasted grosbeak 2

Pine siskin 3 2 1

Purple finch 1

Evening grosbeak 1

American goldfinch 24 1 1

House finch 34 4

Smith’s longspur 1

Dickcissel 1

White-winged crossbill 1

Red avadavat 2 1

Lesser goldfinch 1

Red-crested cardinal 2 1

Northern cardinal 3

Snow bunting 114 2 14 79 20

Indigo bunting 1

Lazuli bunting 1

Lark bunting 21 1 4 2
43

Table 14. Continued (page 13 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Sparrows 2,358 44 91 580 595 53,340

Sparrows 2,142 41 89 559 589 47,840

Harris’ sparrow 1

Swamp sparrow 4

Savannah sparrow 87 1 7 3 1,000

Fox sparrow 11 1 4,100

White-throated sparrow 17 1 1 2

Golden-crowned sparrow 3 1

Field sparrow 6

Lark sparrow 8

White-crowned sparrow 7

Grasshopper sparrow 13 1 1

Java sparrow 2 1

Vesper sparrow 4 1

Chipping sparrow 9 1

Lincoln’s sparrow 4

Song sparrow 31 7 3 400

Sage sparrow 3

American tree sparrow 6

Towhees 4

Rufous-sided towhee 3

Green-tailed towhee 1

Mannikins 95 1 47 8 3,600

Mannikins 23 11

Nutmeg mannikin 31 16 6 1,600

Chestnut mannikin 41 1 20 2 2,000

Misc. perching birds 181 9 5 27 54 87,100

Perching birds 83 8 3 12 50 87,100

House sparrow 58 1 9

Cedar waxwing 17 1 3 4

American pipit 12 1

Loggerhead shrike 5 1

Common waxbill 3

Warbling silverbill 1 1

Japanese white-eye 1

Red-vented bulbul 1 1
44

Table 14. Continued (page 14 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Total known birds 38,474 4,619 3,514 8,249 296,165 226,669,043

Total unknown birds 48,942 4,987 2,876 5,319 97,356 81,643,958

Unknown bird - ? size 23,014 2,565 1,252 1,447 27,300 29,635,466

Unknown bird-large 1,853 799 377 212 28,539 29,195,971

Unknown bird-medium 6,432 1017 551 893 32,455 10,951,800

Unknown bird-small 17,643 606 696 2,767 9,062 11,860,721

Total birds387,416 9,606 6,390 13,568 393,521 308,313,001

Flying mammals (bats)

Old world fruit bats 5 1 2 1 72 3,069,400

Vesper bats 1

Red bat 17 1 1 1

Hoary bat 2

East. small-footed myotis 1

Little brown bat 15

Big brown bat 3

Silver-haired bat 1

Free-tailed bats 7 1

Brazilian free-tailed bat 26

Pocketed free-tailed bat 1

Total known bats 79 2 2 3 73 3,069,400

Total unknown bats 220 5 21 27 106,440

Total bats4299 7 2 24 100 3,175,840

Terrestrial mammals

Marsupials (opossum) 66

Xenarthyras (armadillo) 17 1 2 8 700

Lagomorphs 229 6 8 4 20 104,484

Black-tailed jackrabbit 81 2 1 24,384

White-tailed jackrabbit 19 1 1

Rabbits 86 2 3 3 13 2,100

Eastern cottontail 43 2 4 6 78,000

Rodents 126 2 2 4 3

Pocket gophers 2

Squirrels 1

Prairie dog 20 1 4

Woodchuck 82 2 1 3

Woodrats 2
45

Table 14. Continued (page 15 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Muskrat 9

N. American porcupine 10

Carnivores 641 44 94 9 13,949 3,112,976

Canids 3 1

Coyote 283 28 62 4 11,679 2,776,040

Domestic dog 29 8 16 1 96 301,000

Foxes 64 4 5 1 10 750

Red fox 54 5

Common gray fox 4 1 1 2 186

Raccoon 58 2 3 2 2,160 35,000

White-nosed coati 1

Ringtail 1

Skunks 56 1 2

Striped skunk 62 1

River otter 2 1

Badger 2

Mink 1

Domestic cat 18

Small Indian mongoose 3

Artiodactyls 815 675 410 77 229,080 35,527,187

Deer 16 13 10 696 197,000

White-tailed deer 729 601 357 67 194,967 28,739,056

Mule deer 37 32 20 3 10,512 751,827

Wapiti (elk) 9 9 6 2 11,560 5,496,204

Moose 4 3 4

Caribou 2 2 1

Cattle 8 8 6 2 6,215 187,000

Pronghorn 7 6 5 2 5,130 156,100

Swine (pigs) 1

Collared peccary 2 1 1 1

Perissodactyls 4 4 3 1,008 23,849

Horse 3 3 3 1,008 23,849

Burro 1 1

Total known t. mammals 1,898 732 519 94 244,068 38,769,196

Total unknown t. mammal 14 6 6 1

Total terrestrial mammals51,912 738 525 95 244,068 38,769,196
46

Table 14. Continued (page 16 of 16).

19-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Reptiles

Turtles 79 2 1

Turtles 47 2 1

Florida soft shell turtle 4

Eastern box turtle 4

Common snapping turtle 3

Diamondback terrapin 19

Painted turtle 2

American alligator 14 1 2 3

Green iguana 7 3

Total reptiles 100 1 7 1 3

Total known (all species) 40,551 5,354 4,042 8,347 540,309 268,507,639

Total (unknown species) 49,176 4,998 2,882 5,341 97,383 81,750,398

Grand total 89,727 10,352 6,924 13,688 637,692 350,258,037

1

These reported economic losses by species and species groups should be considered as relative

indices of losses and not as actual estimated losses. Only about 20 percent of strikes involving civil

aircraft are reported and only about 44 percent of reported strikes identify the wildlife species or

species group responsible. Furthermore, less than 25 percent of reported strikes indicating

damage also provided an estimate of the cost of damage or the downtime (see Table 18). Finally,

even when cost estimates were provided, many reports were filed before aircraft damage had

been fully assessed. See Table 18 for a more detailed projection of actual economic losses.

2 More than 1 animal was struck by the aircraft.

3 Of the 87,416 reported bird strikes, 38,474 (44 percent) identified the bird at least to species

group. Of the 38,474 reports with birds identified to species group, 24,351 (63 percent) identified

the bird to exact species (381 species total of which 176 caused damage). Thus, the bird was

identified to species in 28 percent of the reported strikes.

4 Of the 299 reported bat strikes, 79 (26 percent) identified the bat at least to species group. Of the

79 reports with bats identified to species group, 66 (84 percent) identified the bat to exact species

(8 species total of which 1 caused damage). Thus, the bat was identified to species in 22 percent

of the reported strikes.

5 Of the 1,912 reported terrestrial mammal strikes, 1,898 (99 percent) identified the mammal at

least to species group. Of the 1,898 reports with mammals identified to species group, 1,667 (88

percent) identified the mammal to exact species (33 species total of which 19 caused damage).

Thus, the mammal was identified to species in 87 percent of the reported strikes.
47

Table 15. Number of reported strikes, strikes with damage, and strikes having a

negative effect-on-flight (EOF) for the four most commonly struck bird groups and three

most commonly struck terrestrial mammal groups, civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Reported strikes Strikes with damage Strikes with EOF

Species group1

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

19-year

total

% of

total

known

Birds

Gulls 7,470 19 1,169 25 935 27

Pigeons/ doves 5,590 15 341 7 400 11

Raptors 5,070 13 852 18 574 16

Waterfowl 3,175 8 1,418 31 694 20

All other known 17,169 45 839 18 911 26

Total known birds 38,474 100 4,619 100 3,514 100

Unknown birds 48,942 4,987 2,876

Total birds 87,416 9,606 6,390

Terrestrial mammals

Artiodactyls 815 43 675 92 410 79

Carnivores 641 34 44 6 94 18

Lagomorphs 229 12 6 1 8 2

All other known 213 11 7 1 7 1

Total known t. mammals 1,898 100 732 100 519 100

Unknown t. mammals 14 6 6

Total t. mammals 1,912 738 525

1 See Table 14 for listing of species within each species group.
48

Table 16. Number of strikes to civil aircraft causing human fatality or injury and number

of injuries and fatalities by wildlife species, USA, 1990–2008.

Species of

wildlife

No. of

strikes

No. of

humans

Species of

wildlife

No. of

strikes

No. of

humans

Strikes causing fatalities Strikes causing injuries (continued)

Unknown bird 5 7 American coot 2 2

Amer. white pelican 1 5 Rock pigeon 2 2

Canada goose 1 2 American kestrel 1 2

Brown pelican 1 1 Spotted dove 1 2

White-tailed deer 1 1 Domestic dog 1 2

Total (fatalities) 9 16 Mule deer 1 1

Sharp-tailed grouse 1 1

Strikes causing injuries Eastern cottontail 1 1

Unknown bird 35 40 Horse 1 1

White-tailed deer 17 24 Western grebe 1 1

Canada goose 15 18 Horned grebe 1 1

Ducks 13 15 Tropicbirds 1 1

Turkey vulture 11 13 Red-tailed tropicbird 1 1

Vultures 9 9 D.-crested cormorant 1 1

Gulls 8 9 Great frigatebird 1 1

Geese 7 7 Egrets 1 1

Red-tailed hawk 4 5 Lesser scaup 1 1

Black vulture 4 4 Long-tailed duck 1 1

Hawks 3 5 Snow goose 1 1

Herring gull 3 3 Sandhill crane 1 1

Ring-billed gull 2 8 Doves 1 1

Golden eagle 2 4 Mourning dove 1 1

Cattle 2 3 Owls 1 1

Anhinga 2 2 Sparrows 1 1

Mallard 2 2

Osprey 2 2 Total (injuries) 167 209
49

Table 17. Number of civil aircraft lost (destroyed or damaged beyond repair) after

striking wildlife by wildlife species and aircraft mass category, USA, 1990-20081.

Aircraft2 mass category

(Maximum takeoff mass)

Wildlife species or

species group

<2,250

kg

2,251-

5,700 kg

5,701-

27,000 kg

>27,000

kg

Total

aircraft

lost

White-tailed deer 13 5 1 19

Unknown bird 8 1 1 10

Canada goose 1 3 4

Cattle 1 1 2

Vulture33 3

Amer. white pelican 1 1

Bald eagle 1 1

Brown pelican 1 1

Coyote 1 1

Domestic dog 1 1

Eastern cottontail 1 1

Eurasian kestrel 1 1

Hawk 1 1

Mourning dove 1 1

Ring-billed gull 1 1

Wapiti (elk) 1 1

Total 31 12 5 1 49

1 Thirty-three (67 percent) of the 49 wildlife strikes resulting in a destroyed aircraft occurred at

General Aviation airports, 9 occurred away from an airport, 6 occurred at USA airports

certificated for passenger service under 14 CFR Part 139, and 1 occurred at a foreign airport

certificated for passenger service.

2 Engine types on the 49 destroyed aircraft were piston (36), turbofan (5), turbojet (2), turboprop

(5), and turboshaft (1). Aircraft operator was business (25), private (21), and commercial

transport (3).

3 Two turkey vultures and 1 unknown species of vulture (either turkey or black).
50

Table 18. Number of reported wildlife strikes indicating damage or a negative effect-on-flight (EOF) and

reported losses in hours of downtime and U.S. dollars, for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008.

Number of reports

Cost in millions of dollars ($)

(Number of reports)

Total

reports

Reports

indicating

adverse

effect

Reports

indicating

aircraft

damage

Reports

indicating

negative

EOF

Reported

time (hours)

aircraft out

of service

(No. of

reports)

Direct

cost

Other

cost

Total

cost

19-yr

total 89,727 15,179 10,352 6,924 637,692 308,603 41,655 350,258

(4,301) (2,620) (1,157)

19-yr

avg. 4,722 799 545 364 33,563 16.242 2.219 18.435

(238) (138) (61)

Mean losses per incident reported 148.3 0.118 0.036 0.154

Estimated annual losses

Minimum1118,448 94.100 28.762 122.862

Maximum2592,245 470.498 143.812 614.311

1 Minimum values are based on the assumption that all 15,179 reported strikes indicating an adverse effect

(negative EOF and/or damage) to aircraft (mean of 799/year) incurred similar amounts of damage and/or

downtime and that these reports are all of the adverse-effect strikes that occurred.

2 Maximum values are based on the assumption that the 15,179 reported strikes indicating an adverse

effect represent only 20 percent of the total strikes that occurred (Cleary et al. 2005, Wright and Dolbeer

2005).
51

This page intentionally left blank
52

Figures

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

Terrestrial mammals

Birds

Figure 1. Number of reported bird (N = 87,416) and terrestrial mammal (N = 1,912) strikes to civil

aircraft, USA, 1990–2008. Additionally, 299 and 100 strikes involving bats and reptiles,

respectively, were reported for a total of 89,727 strikes by all species of wildlife (see Table 1).

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

Terrestrial mammals

Birds

Figure 2. Number of reported bird (N = 9,606) and terrestrial mammal (N = 738) strikes causing

damage to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2008. Additionally, 7 and 1 damaging strikes involving bats

and reptiles, respectively, were reported for a total of 10,352 damaging strikes by all species of

wildlife (see Tables 11 and 12).
53

This page intentionally left blank
54

APPENDIX A.

SELECTED SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE STRIKES TO U.S. CIVIL

AIRCRAFT, 2008

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, through an interagency agreement with the Federal

Aviation Administration, compiles a database of all reported wildlife strikes to U.S. civil

aircraft and to foreign carriers experiencing strikes in the USA. We compiled 89,727

strike reports from 1,456 USA airports and 215 foreign airports for 1990 through 2008

(7,516 strikes in 2008). The following examples from the database in 2008 are

presented to show the serious impact that strikes by birds or other wildlife can have on

aircraft. These examples, from throughout the USA, demonstrate the widespread and

diverse nature of the problem. The examples are not intended to highlight or criticize

individual airports because strikes have occurred on almost every airport in the USA.

Some of the strike examples reported here occurred off airport property during

approach or departure. For more information on wildlife strikes or to report a strike, visit

www.birdstrike.org and http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov.

A U.S.-based Air Cargo Boeing 747 overran the runway at Brussels International Airport,

Belgium, after a rejected takeoff due to a Eurasian kestrel ingestion into the #3 engine,

25 May 2008. The plane broke into 3 pieces. None of the 5 people on board was

seriously injured. This was 1 of 6 U.S. civil aircraft destroyed by wildlife strikes in 2008.
55

Date: 26 January 2008

Aircraft: BD-700

Airport: Palm Beach Intl. (FL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Turkey vulture

Comments from Report: Six fan blades, fan shroud and the engine inlet were damaged. The engine continued to

run with no apparent problems. Time out of service was 14 days. Costs totaled $1,563,000.

Date: 29 January 2008

Aircraft: B-747-200

Airport: Louisville Intl. (KY)

Phase of Flight: Climb

Effect on Flight: Vibration and noise

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Short-eared owl

Comments from Report: Flight crew reported minor noise and vibration shortly after lift-off, which later subsided.

Damage was found to 3 fan blades on the #2 engine. A piece of a liberated fan blade penetrated the cowl. Six fan

blade pairs, the fan case outer-front acoustic panel and inlet cowl were replaced. ID by Smithsonian, Division of

Birds.

Date: 4 March 2008

Aircraft: Cessna Citation I

Airport: Wiley Post (OK)

Phase of Flight: Climb (3,100’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Crashed

Damage: Destroyed

Wildlife Species: American white pelican

Comments from Report: Witnesses saw the aircraft fly through a flock of birds, heard the engine compressor stall

and watched the plane spiral, crash and burn. The NTSB investigated. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds. There

were five fatalities.

Date: 10 March 2008

Aircraft: Airbus 318

Airport: Denver Intl. (CO)

Phase of Flight: Approach (500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Landing gear, nose cowl

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: Hit a flock of Canada geese on 1 mile final. Aircraft went around, declared an emergency

due to smoke in cockpit and damage to aircraft. Loss of fluids was reported near taxiway and also brake and

hydraulic problems. Aircraft had to be moved by tug to gate. Nose cowl was dented and both engines were struck.

At least one engine ingested a bird. Time out of service was reported as a minimum of 16 hours. ID by Smithsonian,

Division of Birds.
56

Date: 12 March 2008

Aircraft: Bell-407

Airport: Miami, FL

Phase of Flight: En Route (600’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Windshield

Wildlife Species: Turkey vulture

Comments from Report: Helicopter hit bird over Biscayne Bay about 6 miles east of MIA. It landed safely at MIA.

Pilot was transported to the hospital by Fire and Rescue due to cuts and lacerations to his face caused by the broken

windshield. Bird remains entered the cockpit. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 8 April 2008

Aircraft: Challenger 600

Airport: Colorado Springs Airport (CO)

Phase of Flight: Climb (3,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Nose, engines 1 and 2

Wildlife Species: American white pelicans

Comments from Report: Shortly after departure, the aircraft had multiple, large birdstrikes. One bird penetrated

the nose area just below the windshield and continued through the forward cockpit bulkhead. Bird remains were

sprayed throughout the cockpit. No injuries reported. Both engines ingested at least 1 bird. The #1 engine had fan

damage: the #2 engine lost power and had a dented inlet lip. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds. NTSB

investigated. Cost reported to exceed $2 million.

Date: 19 April 2008

Aircraft: Piper Aerostar

Airport: Colorado Springs Airport (CO)

Phase of Flight: Approach (2,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Windshield

Wildlife Species: Turkey vulture

Comments from Report: Bird penetrated center of front windshield when aircraft was on 10-mile final leaving a 2-

ft hole. Pilot was injured, his headset was knocked off. Vision was impaired by blood and the 200 mph wind coming

through the broken windshield. Pilot was unable to directly communicate with the tower but transponded an

emergency signal hoping the control tower would clear the airport for him. An uneventful landing was made. Pilot

was treated at hospital.

Date: 2 May 2008

Aircraft: RV-7A

Airport: Frazier Lake Airpark (CA)

Phase of Flight: Climb (50’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Crashed

Damage: Destroyed

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: During departure for a touch and go landing, aircraft hit a goose with the left wing. Pilot

lost control and crashed into a field 500 feet southwest of the runway and cart wheeled. The aircraft was destroyed.

NTSB investigated.
57

Date: 25 May 2008

Aircraft: B-747-200

Airport: Brussels Intl. Airport (Belgium)

Phase of Flight: Takeoff run

Effect on Flight: Aborted takeoff

Damage: Aircraft destroyed

Wildlife Species: Eurasian kestrel

Comments from Report: The aircraft overran the runway after a rejected takeoff due to a bird being ingested in #3

engine. The plane broke into three pieces. None of the five on board was seriously injured. ID by Smithsonian,

Division of Birds (U.S. air carrier).

Date: 27 May 2008

Aircraft: B-737-200

Airport: Ugnu-Kuparuk Airport (AK)

Phase of Flight: Approach (500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Aborted landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Trumpeter swan

Comments from Report: During approach, a trumpeter swan was ingested. Pilot aborted landing at Kuparuk.

Engine was shut down and secured. The flight diverted to Deadhorse without further incident. Cost of repairs was

$500,000. Time out of service was 3 days.

Date: 9 June 2008

Aircraft: BE-58

Airport: Hernando Village Airpark (MS)

Phase of Flight: Climb (rotation)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine and landing gear

Wildlife Species: White-tailed deer

Comments from Report: At rotation, aircraft hit a deer with the right engine, removing the right gear from the

aircraft. Aircraft returned to land on the nose gear and left gear. Aircraft skidded off runway. Substantial damage

was reported.

Date: 20 June 2008

Aircraft: B-747-400

Airport: Chicago O’Hare Intl. (IL)

Phase of Flight: Takeoff run

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine #2

Wildlife Species: Red-tailed hawk

Comments from Report: During takeoff run, aircraft ingested a hawk. The flight continued takeoff and climbed to

dump 165,000 lbs of fuel (cost $100,000) then returned to the airport with one engine out. Several blades had

significant damage. Both the #1 and #2 engines had vibrations but the #1 engine was not damaged. Some blades

were replaced while others were blended. Thirty man-hours to repair.
58

Date: 5 July 2008

Aircraft: Mooney M20K

Airport: Livingston County Spencer J Hardy (MI)

Phase of Flight: Takeoff run

Effect on Flight: Aborted takeoff

Damage: Wing, fuselage, propeller, landing gear

Wildlife Species: White-tailed deer

Comments from Report: Aircraft hit a deer on takeoff roll at dusk. The pilot immediately aborted the takeoff and

returned to the ramp. The left wing, lower fuselage, propeller and left main landing gear were damaged. NTSB

investigated.

Date: 24 July 2008

Aircraft: Learjet 60

Airport: Morristown Muni (NJ)

Phase of Flight: Takeoff run

Effect on Flight: Aborted takeoff

Damage: Engine #2 and wing

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: During takeoff run a flock of 2-10 geese were struck. The #2 engine ingested a Canada

goose causing damage and the wing was also damaged. Takeoff was aborted. Aircraft was out of service for 8 days

and cost totaled $3 million.

Date: 29 August 2008

Aircraft: Ercoupe 415 C

Airport: Sebring Regional (FL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (1,300’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shut down, emergency landing

Damage: Destroyed

Wildlife Species: Unknown bird

Comments from Report: The pilot saw wood pieces from his prop and white feathers coming into the cockpit

through the open canopy. An extreme vibration ensued and he shut the engine down and made an emergency

landing in a pasture. The aircraft hit a ditch which was hidden by tall grass. The nose gear collapsed, the right wing

spar bent aft and the firewall buckled. The pilot was flying over a garbage dump at the time of the strike. NTSB

investigated.

Date: 11 September 2008

Aircraft: MD-88

Airport: Atlanta Intl. (GA)

Phase of Flight: Climb (5’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shut down, precautionary landing

Damage: Engine #1

Wildlife Species: Rock pigeon

Comments from Report: The number 1 engine was totaled. Odor and haze in cabin. Vibration in engine. Two-ten

birds reported as struck. Aircraft made an emergency landing. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds. Remains taken

from nose and runway.
59

Date: 21 September 2008

Aircraft: B-767

Airport: Orlando Intl. (FL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (1,000 AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Engine, nose

Wildlife Species: Wood stork

Comments from Report: Aircraft had multiple birdstrikes shortly after liftoff which hit the left engine and radome.

The crew declared an emergency and returned to land safely 12 minutes after departure. Passengers heard 2 loud

bangs followed by vibration and noise. A horrible smell was noticed. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 26 September 2008

Aircraft: Cirrus CR-22

Airport: Fort Lauderdale Executive (FL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Windshield, nose, propeller, landing gear

Wildlife Species: Anhinga

Comments from Report: The bird entered the cockpit, striking the pilot’s face. He required stitches. The deice boot

on two prop blades received damage. The left engine cowl had damaged paint and fiberglass. ID by Smithsonian,

Division of Birds.

Date: 28 September 2008

Aircraft: Piper 28

Airport: Beverly Municipal (MA)

Phase of Flight: Landing roll

Effect on Flight: None

Damage: Destroyed

Wildlife Species: White-tailed deer

Comments from Report: The deer was hit at dusk. The right wing and right engine compartment were severely

damaged. Aircraft was considered totaled ($48,000). NTSB investigated.

Date: 25 October 2008

Aircraft: MD-90-30

Airport: Salt Lake City (UT)

Phase of Flight: Takeoff run

Effect on Flight: Aborted takeoff

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Ferruginous hawk (juvenile)

Comments from Report: Hawk was ingested at high speed during takeoff. The engine stalled, lost thrust and

takeoff was aborted. Runway was closed 30 minutes for cleanup. Airline mechanics reported that the cost of 4 tires,

4 brake assemblies and 4 fan blades would be $554,400. This cost does not include labor and down time. Flight was

delayed 3 hours. Final estimate for repairs was around $3.2 million. Airline policy required pilots be removed from

service. ID by Wildlife Services biologist.
60

Date: 18 November 2008

Aircraft: Aerospatiale AS 350

Airport: Near West Point over Hudson River (NY)

Phase of Flight: En Route (2,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Canopy and nose

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: Helicopter was over the Hudson River near West Point Military Academy. Report

indicates a hole in center left nose area about 21” by 14”. New canopy was ordered from France. Cost reported as

over $91,000. Time out of service was about 3 months.

Date: 18 November 2008

Aircraft: MD-11

Airport: Memphis Intl. (TN)

Phase of Flight: Climb (100’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Unknown bird

Comments from Report: At approximately 100’ AGL engine had a compressor stall and aircraft yawed left. Pilots

heard a loud bang and saw the EVM Comp indicator spike. They made a precautionary landing back at Memphis.

Maintenance found moderate damage to the #1 engine. Cost of repairs was $235,000. Time out of service was 41

hours.

Date: 20 November 2008

Aircraft: B-757-200

Airport: Chicago O’Hare Intl. (IL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Mallard

Comments from Report: During climb-out, pilots felt a bump, heard a bang and smelled something burning. An

emergency was declared and an uneventful landing was made. Pilots thought it might have been a birdstrike but

were concerned mostly about the smell. Multiple birds were struck. Maintenance found feathers in the fan. Several

fan blades were replaced. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 6 December 2008

Aircraft: A-320

Airport: New Orleans Intl. (LA)

Phase of Flight: Climb (500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shut down and precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Lesser scaup

Comments from Report: During climb-out, 4 birds appeared on the nose out of the dark. Birds tried to dive and

were lost from view on right side followed by a loud thump and #2 engine vibrations. An emergency was declared

and a/c returned to land. Post flight inspection found major engine damage. There were many deformed fan and

exhaust blades. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.
61

Date: 19 December 2008

Aircraft: MD-10-10

Airport: Memphis Intl. (TN)

Phase of Flight: Approach (2,700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: None

Damage: Engine, engine cowl, thrust reverser

Wildlife Species: Gadwall

Comments from Report: Replaced #3 engine cowl, #3 engine and #3 thrust reverser. Time out of service was 78

hours. Total cost was $913,678. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 26 December 2008

Aircraft: DC-10-30

Airport: Memphis Intl. (TN)

Phase of Flight: Descent (9,700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: None

Damage: Wing

Wildlife Species: Snow goose

Comments from Report: Repaired and replaced two slats. Time out of service was 8 days. Costs totaled $220,000.

ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

These turkey vultures were attracted to the carcass of a Canada goose at the

approach end of a runway at an eastern U.S. airport, March 2008. The goose

had been struck by a landing aircraft 1 hour earlier. Carcasses at airports not

only pose a direct foreign object damage (FOD) hazard, but they attract

scavenging birds and mammals as well. Carcasses from wildlife strikes

should be removed from the air operations area as soon as possible. Photo

by USDA.