Wind turbines
<http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/environment/alternative-energy/wind-power-profile.html>
can kill bats without touching them by causing a bends-like condition
due to rapidly dropping air pressure, new research suggests. Scientists
aren't sure why, but bats are attracted to the turbines, which often
stand 300 feet (90 meters) high and sport 200-foot (60-meter) blades.
The mammals'
<http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals.html> curiosity
can result in lethal blows by the rotors, which spin at a rate of about
160 miles (260 kilometers) per hour.
But scientist Erin Baerwald and colleagues report that only about half
of the bat corpses they found near Alberta, Canada
<http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/countries/country_canada.html>,
turbine bases showed any physical evidence of being hit by a blade.
A surprising 90 percent showed signs of internal hemorrhaging�evidence
of a drop in air pressure near the blades that causes fatal damage to
the bats' lungs with a condition called barotrauma.
In humans, the condition is related to the bends and can affect divers
and airplane passengers during ascents and descents.
See more in the full article at
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/08/080825-bat-bends.html
Lee Skinner
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