Wildlife deterrence system arranged in wind turbine blade

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for deterring wildlife, such as bats and birds, from drawing too proximate to an operating wind turbine. Wildlife species may be sensitive to transmitted frequencies, such as ultrasonic frequencies above the range of human hearing. For example, bats may avoid areas where ultrasonic frequencies are being emitted, either because the emitted ultrasonic frequency interferes with the echolocation of the bat, or because encountering the ultrasonic frequency is uncomfortable for the bat. In some aspects, acoustic transmitters may be arranged along a length of a blade of a wind turbine. A controller may direct the acoustical transmitters to transmit signals having ultrasonic frequencies to deter wildlife encounters. The controller may direct the transmitters to transmit only during periods where wildlife encounters are likely to occur (e.g. at night, during migration seasons, during favorable weather conditions, or the like).