Seabird use of tidal stream environments and potential interactions with tidal energy devices
type: CreativeWork
description: As climate change becomes a more pressing reality in the 21st century, governments around the world are setting targets to meet electricity production demand from renewable energy sources such as tidal streams. However, tidal stream environments are also important habitats for marine wildlife, including seabirds. Risk of collision and habitat displacement are the major negative effects of concern. The following thesis therefore examined the use of tidal stream environments by diving seabirds and their potential interactions with tidal stream energy devices at designated sites. Focus was given to two diving seabird species that are potentially vulnerable to negative effects from tidal turbines, the European shag Gulossus aristotelis and razorbill Alca torda. High resolution biologging and telemetry (Time Depth Recorders (TDRs) and GPS) data from individuals breeding at colonies within a major tidal energy site, the Pentland Firth, Scotland, were analysed. Year-round camera trap monitoring and diet sampling to provide longterm understanding of impacts at another commercially operational site, Bluemull Sound, Scotland, were trialled. Assessing the spatial overlap of seabird foraging distributions (areas of “high risk”) with tidal development and lease sites revealed the importance of species and scale. I found that the smaller the site, the less overlap there was. While this was the case for both species, the difference was more dramatic in European shags, where overlap with the overall development area was 99%, while overlap with the lease sites within was 0.72%. The influence of industry-relevant environmental variables (tidal flow velocity and bathymetry) on foraging behaviour were examined using statistical modelling techniques. Within the tidal stream environment, foraging behaviour and consequently risk level was again species-specific. European shags were strongly influenced by seafloor depth, and therefore used the water column in its entirety, centring on dept…
abstract: As climate change becomes a more pressing reality in the 21st century, governments around the world are setting targets to meet electricity production demand from renewable energy sources such as tidal streams. However, tidal stream environments are also important habitats for marine wildlife, including seabirds. Risk of collision and habitat displacement are the major negative effects of concern. The following thesis therefore examined the use of tidal stream environments by diving seabirds and their potential interactions with tidal stream energy devices at designated sites. Focus was given to two diving seabird species that are potentially vulnerable to negative effects from tidal turbines, the European shag Gulossus aristotelis and razorbill Alca torda. High resolution biologging and telemetry (Time Depth Recorders (TDRs) and GPS) data from individuals breeding at colonies within a major tidal energy site, the Pentland Firth, Scotland, were analysed. Year-round camera trap monitoring and diet sampling to provide longterm understanding of impacts at another commercially operational site, Bluemull Sound, Scotland, were trialled. Assessing the spatial overlap of seabird foraging distributions (areas of “high risk”) with tidal development and lease sites revealed the importance of species and scale. I found that the smaller the site, the less overlap there was. While this was the case for both species, the difference was more dramatic in European shags, where overlap with the overall development area was 99%, while overlap with the lease sites within was 0.72%. The influence of industry-relevant environmental variables (tidal flow velocity and bathymetry) on foraging behaviour were examined using statistical modelling techniques. Within the tidal stream environment, foraging behaviour and consequently risk level was again species-specific. European shags were strongly influenced by seafloor depth, and therefore used the water column in its entirety, centring on dept…
author: Isaksson, Natalie
language: eng
date published: 2023-4-6
date modified: 2026-07-24T05:12:10Z
provider: University of the Highlands and Islands
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of the Highlands and Islands