DOI: 10.5061/dryad.7h44j1043
title: Influence of rotation speed and frequency on the decision of Columba livia domestica to cross the rotor-swept area of paper blades mimicking a wind turbine

description: To reduce bird collisions with wind turbines, automatic detection systems
 have been developed to slow the blades down when a bird is approaching. We
 experimentally tested whether blade rotational speed (i.e., number of
 rotations per min) and frequency (i.e., number of times a blade passes a
 point per min) affected the decision time (i.e., time to take-off), path
 choice (i.e., the position in the aviary), and decision to cross the
 rotor-swept area in Columba livia domestica (rock dove [domestic variety];
 aka homing pigeon; hereafter, pigeon). We used a homemade device with
 paper blades, mimicking the movement of wind turbine blades. We adjusted
 the paper blade dimensions and achromatic contrast with the background to
 match the visual capabilities of pigeons, increasing the probability of
 detection. Pigeons were less likely to cross the rotor-swept area at
 higher speeds and frequencies, independent of their decision time. When
 pigeons crossed the rotor-swept area (43 out of 160 trials), 63% collided
 with the blades, regardless of blade speed or frequency. Pigeons chose to
 avoid the rotor-swept area after they had traveled half the distance to
 the wind turbine. Pigeons were not better able to avoid the rotor-swept
 area when blades were rotating at low speed and/or frequency and often
 collided with the blades. Thus, slowing blades to a low rotational speed
 may not reduce collisions with some species and a complete turbine
 shutdown may be necessary. The feasibility and economic costs of regular
 complete shutdowns after the deceleration triggered by the automatic
 detection systems need further investigation.
description: This dataset contains the coordinates of the pigeons'
 wingtips for each test carried out as part of the study. The coordinates
 were obtained using the method developed by Srinivasan et al.
 2022.
description: # Influence of rotation speed and frequency on the decision of Columba
 livia domestica to cross the rotor-swept area of paper blades mimicking a
 wind turbine
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7h44j1043](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7h44j1043) ## Description of the data and file structure This dataset contains the coordinates of the pigeons' wingtips for each test carried out as part of the study. The coordinates were obtained using the method developed by Srinivasan et al. 2022. ### Files and variables #### File: trajectory.xlsx **Description:**  NA indicates that values are not available. ##### Variables * Bird_ID: ID of the bird * Speed: Speed of the blades (rotations per minute) * Nb_Blade: Number of blades: 0 (no blade), 2 or 4 blades * Position_number: Order in which the positions of the birds along the trajectory were recorded. This figure is variable for each trajectory, as it depends on the number of wing beats the bird makes to cross the aviary. Each position recorded corresponds to a point in time when the bird's wings were fully extended. * X_left: Horinzontal position of the bird's left wing tip (see fig. 1 of the article) * X_right: Horinzontal position of the bird's right wing tip (see fig. 1 of the article) * Y_left: Vertical position of the bird's left wing tip (see fig. 1 of the article) * Y_right: Vertical position of the bird's right wing tip (see fig. 1 of the article) * Height: Height of the bird (cm), a value of 0 indicates that the bird was on the ground