WEST is proud to be a Gold Sponsor for the Renewable Energy Wildlife Institute’s Wind Wildlife Research Meeting in Corpus Christi, Texas! This year’s focus is on addressing climate and biodiversity challenges during the transition to wind energy.
WEST will also be involved in several oral and poster presentations, and we’re co-sponsoring the Boat Tour of Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and the Whooping Crane Conservation field trip on Friday.
November 13th | 10:40 AM- 12:00 PM
Session 1: “Risky Behavior – Assessing and Moderating Risk for Birds and Bats”
Amanda Hale, moderator
“I’m looking forward to moderating the session about risky bird and bat behavior – hope to see you there!”
November 13th | 1:30 – 2:50 PM
“Whooping Cranes and Predicting Power Line Collision Risk: Habitat, Relative Risk, Absolute Risk”
Session 2: Creative Avian Mitigation Solutions
Geoff Palmer, presenter
“Collisions with overheard power lines are one of the leading causes of mortality for the federally listed as endangered whooping crane. I will present a unique, three-tiered approach to assess potential collision risk of whooping cranes with overhead power lines.”
November 13th | 3:10 – 4:10 PM
“Strategies for Efficient Eagle Fatality Monitoring Under the 2024 Eagle Rule”
Eric Hallingstad, presenter
Session 3: Eagle Permits, Monitoring, and Population Modeling in a Changing Regulatory Landscape
“I will discuss the results of our recent fatality monitoring research in the context of the 2024 Eagle Rule, identify tools and relevant data to consider when developing an efficient eagle fatality monitoring protocol, and evaluate cost implications tied to eagle fatality monitoring.”
In Eric’s presentation, he will highlight some of WEST’s tools; you can find the application linked here: https://connect.west-inc.com/SimpleEoA/
November 13th | 3:10 – 4:10 PM
“Permitted Take Implications Associated with the 2024 Eagle Rule”
Simon Weller, presenter
Session 3: Eagle Permits, Monitoring, and Population Modeling in a Changing Regulatory Landscape
“The 2024 Eagle Rule published earlier this year included revisions to eagle incidental take permit regulations. The US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Collision Risk Model is a key tool used in the permitting process. I am excited to present the model’s important applications and discuss the current state of eagle take permitting and monitoring at wind energy facilities alongside other subject experts.”
November 14th | 9:20 – 10:40 AM
“Renewable Energy’s Potential to Reduce Global Climate-mediated Extinction Risk”
Paul Rabie, presenter
Session 4: Confronting the Climate and Biodiversity Crises with a Responsible Transition to Wind Energy
“We looked at how global extinction risk could change in response to the pace of renewable energy buildout over the next 75 years and found that the pace really matters.”
November 14th | 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
“Twenty Years and 600 Post-construction Monitoring Studies – – What Have We Learned? An Overview of the Results of the USFWS and ACP Meta-analysis, and How the Information Can Be Used to Inform Monitoring Strategies”
Rhett Good, presenter
Session 5: Leveraging Existing Data Towards Proactive Conservation
“I will be summarizing data from over 600 post-construction monitoring studies completed over two decades, and describing how the results from past monitoring can be used to guide future monitoring efforts.”
November 14th | 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
“Trends in Tree Bat Abundance Using Post-construction Monitoring Fatality Rates as a Proxy”
Faith Kulzer, presenter
Session 5: Leveraging Existing Data Towards Proactive Conservation
“I will be presenting the results of an analysis on trends in tree bat abundance using PCM fatality rates as a proxy, and summarizing how these conclusions may be relevant for industry in light of the impending hoary bat listing decision.”
Field Trip
WEST Co-sponsored Field Trip: Habitat and Conservation of Whooping Cranes
Friday, November 15th | 8:00 AM – – 1:00 PM
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Lamar Beach, and other places around Corpus Christi, are home to whooping cranes during the winter. The endangered whooping cranes are endemic to North America and are one of North America’s largest birds, driven almost to extinction in the 1940s by hunting and habitat loss. The only self-sustaining wild population of whooping cranes breeds in Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada and typically winters in the coastal marshes of Texas. Join us to try to see some of the 536 individuals, learn more about whooping cranes, their wintering habitat, and the challenges this population faces.
Rosa Palmer, Senior Biologist
Victoria Zero, Senior Biologist
Poster Sessions
Wednesday, November 13th | 5:00 – 7:00 PM
Improved Definitions of Tricolored Bat Habitat Will Facilitate Siting/Permitting Throughout the Species’ Range
Larisa Bishop-Boros, Senior Biologist
Resource Selection and Survival of Plains Sharp-tailed Grouse at a Wind Energy Facility
Chad LeBeau, Senior Biologist, Business Development Manager
Trends in Greater Sage-grouse Lek Counts Relative to Existing Wind Energy Development in Wyoming
Chad LeBeau, Senior Biologist, Business Development Manager
Optimized Smart Curtailment: Achieving Bat Risk Reduction Targets While Minimizing Power Loss from Curtailment
Mike True, Associate Statistician
Whooping Cranes and Predicting Power Line Collision Risk: Habitat, Relative Risk, Absolute Risk
Geoff Palmer, Senior Biologist
How Power Line and Substation Design, Construction, and Operation are Integral to Wind Energy Reliability
Geoff Palmer, Senior Biologist
Best Practices in Searcher Efficiency Trials for Conservation Detection Dogs
Anna Ciecka, Consulting Biologist
Insights from Avian Collision and Avoidance Data from On and Offshore Facilities to Inform Future Collision Risk Assessments and Identify Research Priorities
Sally Yannuzzi, Consulting Biologist
Seasonal and Species-specific Efficacy of Curtailment for Minimizing Bat Fatalities
Victoria Zero, Senior Biologist
Predicting Hoary Bat Fatalities Using the Passage of Regional Weather Systems
Rhett Good, Principal Biologist
Testing the Assumptions of Frick et al. (2017) using Post-construction Monitoring Data
Rhett Good, Principal Biologist