Bat Flight Cage

Wildlife Imaging Systems is part of research team, including Bat Conservation International, Texas Christian University, Texas State University, Bowman Consulting, NRG Systems, and a leading wind power plant operator, that is developing a new experimental approach to measure ultrasonic bat deterrent effectiveness. The bat deterrents are meant to stop bats from approaching a wind turbine rotor swept area (the airspace where the blade pass) by emitting ultrasound that jams the bats echolocation capabilities.

The team constructed a large outdoor flight cage that is 60 meters long, 10 m wide, and 4 m high. Instead of using solid sides the cage is covered with fine netting that allows the ultrasound to natural propagate in the air instead of being reflected while keeping the bats within the test area. It also allows the team to use 4 thermal cameras outside the cage to track the path of the bats as they fly within the cage. Wildlife Imaging Systems helped develop and support the software that identifies the bats, tracking and recording their paths. The resulting data allow for a quantitative analysis of bat behavioral responses to the ultrasound. An example of the tracking algorithm and the resulting data can be found in the video below.