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1 February 2008 Sex-Biased Mortality of Common Terns in Wind Farm Collisions
Eric W. M. Stienen, Wouter Courtens, Joris Everaert, Marc Van De Walle
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Abstract

We studied sex differences in collision mortality in adult Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) at a wind farm in the direct vicinity of a breeding site in Zeebrugge, Belgium in 2005–2007. In total, 64 fatalities were collected and sexed, of which 64% were males. Uneven sex ratio among these birds was most pronounced during the period of incubation and early chick feeding (15 May–15 June), when 78% of the 28 mortalities were male. During prelaying and feeding of young, the sex ratio of mortalities did not differ from equality. We argue that sex-biased collision mortality in Common Terns does not result from morphological differences between the sexes, but rather reflects differences in foraging frequency between males and females during egg-laying and incubation.

Eric W. M. Stienen, Wouter Courtens, Joris Everaert, and Marc Van De Walle "Sex-Biased Mortality of Common Terns in Wind Farm Collisions," The Condor 110(1), 154-157, (1 February 2008). https://doi.org/10.1525/cond.2008.110.1.154
Received: 1 March 2007; Accepted: 1 December 2007; Published: 1 February 2008
KEYWORDS
Belgium
Common Tern
mortality
sex differences
Sterna hirundo
wind turbine
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