Short Science Summary: Offshore Wind Farms as Stepping Stones for Non-indigenous Species

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One of the most important effects of offshore wind farms is the unintentional provision of a new habitat which invariably is rapidly colonized by hard substrate species. Turbine foundations provide hard vertical substrates and, depending on the structure and scour protection used, varying degrees of habitat complexity. These novel surfaces span the full water column from the splash zone to the seafloor, often in areas where comparable natural hard surfaces are absent. Non-indigenous species (NIS) are species that did not occur in a particular geographic region, such as the North Sea, prior to a certain date (e.g., the beginning of the 17th century). They consist of species introduced by human activities outside their natural past or present range (introduced species), and species that spread by their own means (range expanding species) due to rising temperatures or other factors. As ocean sprawl in shallow and coastal waters has favored NIS, there is concern that increasing development of offshore wind farms will accelerate this phenomenon. This summary represents a general overview of the research, produced by WREN under IEA Wind. 

The table below contains the literature relevant to this summary document and will continue to be updated as new literature is added to Tethys.

Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Wildlife and Wind Farms - Conflicts and Solutions, Volume 3. Offshore: Potential Effects Perrow, M. Book Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Chemicals, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Physical Environment, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals
Assessing the Impact of Windfarms in Subtidal, Exposed Marine Areas Dahlgren, T., Schläppy, M., Saskov, A., Andersson, M., Rzhanov, Y., Fer, I. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Ecosystem Processes
Intervisibility Analysis of an Offshore Wind Farm Using GIS Tools Errico, A., Guastaferro, F., Oliviero, C., Santamaria, R. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Human Dimensions, Visual Impacts
Integrating Social and Ecological Research on the Impacts of Offshore Wind Farms in North America ten Brink, T., Dalton, T., Livermore, J. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates, Human Dimensions, Fisheries, Social & Economic Data
Toward an Ecosystem Approach of Marine Renewable Energy: The Case of the Offshore Wind Farm of Courseulles-sur-Mer in the Bay of Seine Niquil, N., Raoux, A., Haraldsson, M., Araignous, E., Halouani, G., Leroy, B., Safi, G., Noguès, Q., Grangeré, K., Dauvin, J., Riera, F., Mazé, C., Le Loc’h, F., Ching Villanueva, M., Hattab, T., Bourdaud, P., Champagnat, J., Ben Rais Lasram, F. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment
Unforeseen Responses of a Breeding Seabird to the Construction of an Offshore Wind Farm Harwood, A., Perrow, M., Berridge, R., Tomlinson, M., Skeate, E. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change, Avoidance Seabirds, Birds
The Added Value of 'Small-Scale' Monitoring of the Soft-Sediment Endobenthos around Offshore Wind Farms in the Belgian Part of the North Sea Coates, D., Vanaverbeke, M., Magda, V. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Invertebrates
Mobile Autonomous Platforms for Passive-Acoustic Monitoring of High-frequency Klinck, H., Fregosi, S., Matsumoto, H., Turpin, A., Mellinger, D., Erofeev, A., Barth, J., Shearman, R., Jafarmardar, K., Stelzer, R. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Habitat Change Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
The Development of Benthic Communities on Hard Substrates within OWEZ, the First Dutch Offshore Wind Farm Noordzee Wind Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Mapping of Benthic Habitats at Marine Renewable Energy Sites Using Multibeam Echosounder and Sediment Profile Imaging Technologies Revelas, E., Sackmann, B., Maher, N., Jones, C. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Physical Environment
Offshore Wind Farms and their Impact on Fish Abundance and Community Structure Stenberg, C., Dinesen, G., van Deurs, M., Berg, C., Mosegaard, H., Leonhard, S., Groome, T., Støttrup, J. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish
Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus Migration in Relation to Offshore Wind Farms Griffin, L., Rees, E., Hughes, B. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Habitat Change Birds, Waterfowl
Benthic production and energy export from man-made structures to softbottoms: does it matter? Dannheim, J., Birchenough, S., Beermann, J., Garcia, C., Coolen, J., De Mesel, I., Degraer, S. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes
Proceedings of the Wind-Wildlife Research Meeting IX PNWWRM IX Conference Paper Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Habitat Change Bats, Birds
Marine Life Observation using Classification Algorithms on Ocean Surface Photographs Maussang, F., Guelton, L., Garello, R., Chevallier, A. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Birds, Marine Mammals
New insights into the influence of turbines on the behaviour of migrant birds: implications for predicting impacts of offshore wind developments on wildlife Willmott, J., Forcey, G., Vukovich, M. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Habitat Change Birds
Simulation of Composite Suction Foundation to Topography Change Lin, S., Wang, H., Chiang, Y., Fang, H., Hsiao, S. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment
Endangered Atlantic Sturgeon in the New York Wind Energy Area: implications of future development in an offshore wind energy site Ingram, E., Cerrato, R., Dunton, K., Frisk, M. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds, Fish, Demersal Fish
Offshore wind farms and the attraction-production hypothesis: insights from a combination of stomach content and stable isotope analyses Mavraki, N., Degraer, S., Vanaverbeke, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish, Pelagic Fish
Settlement success of European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis) on different types of hard substrate to support reef development in offshore wind farms ter Hofstede, R., Witte, S., Kamermans, P., van Koningsveld, M., Tonk, L. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Habitat Change Invertebrates
Artificial Reef Effect in Relation to Offshore Renewable Energy Conversion: State of the Art Langhamer, O. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Physical Environment
Impact Hypothesis for Offshore Wind Farms: Explanatory Models for Species Distribution at Extremely Exposed Rocky Areas Schläppy, M., Saskov, A., Dahlgren, T. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Offshore Wind Farm Artificial Reefs Affect Ecosystem Structure and Functioning: A Synthesis Degraer, S., Carey, D., Coolen, J., Hutchison, Z., Kerckhof, F., Rumes, B., Vanaverbeke, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates
Automatic Segregation of Pelagic Habitats Plonus, R-M., Vogl, S., Floeter, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Human Dimensions
Chasing the offshore wind farm wind-wake-induced upwelling/downwelling dipole Floeter, J., Pohlmann, T., Harmer, A, Mollmann, C. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
Diversity of Demersal and Megafaunal Assemblages Inhabiting Sandbanks of the Irish Sea Atalah, J., Fitch, J., Coughlan, J., Chopelet, J., Coscia, I., Farrell, E. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates, Fish, Demersal Fish
Dominant Frequency Extraction for Operational Underwater Sound of Offshore Wind Turbines Using Adaptive Stochastic Resonance Wang, R., Xu, X., Zou, Z., Huang, L., Tao, Y. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change, Noise Fish, Physical Environment
Effect of an Offshore Wind Farm on the Viviparous Eelpout: Biometrics, Brood Development and Population Studies in Lillgrund, Sweden Langhamer, O., Dahlgren, T., Rosenqvist, G. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish
Generalized changes of benthic communities after construction of wind farms in the southern North Sea Coolen, J., Vanaverbeke, J., Dannheim, J., Garcia, C., Birchenough, S., Krone, R., Beermann, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Demersal Fish, Invertebrates
International assessment of priority environmental issues for land-based and offshore wind energy development Green, R., Gill, E., Hein, C., Couturier, L., Mascarenhas, M., May, R., Newell, D., Rumes, B. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment
Local Effects of Blue Mussels Around Turbine Foundations in an Ecosystem Model of Nysted Off-Shore Wind Farm, Denmark Maar, M., Bolding, K., Petersen, J., Hansen, J., Timmermann, K. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Repeated Mapping of Reefs Constructed by Sabellaria spinulosa Leuckart 1849 at an Offshore Wind Farm Site Pearce, B., Farinas-Franco, J., Wilson, C., Pitts, J., deBurgh, A., Somerfield, P. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Benthic biodiversity on old platforms, young wind farms, and rocky reefs Coolen, J., van der Weide, B., Cuperus, J., Blomberg, M., Van Moorsel, G., Faasse, M., Bos, O., Degraer, S., Lindeboom, H., Norkko, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Offshore Wind Energy and Benthic Habitat Changes: Lessons from Block Island Wind Farm Hutchison, Z., Bartley, M., Degraer, S., English, P., Khan, A., Livermore, J., Rumes, B., King, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment
Organic matter assimilation by hard substrate fauna in an offshore wind farm area: a pulse-chase study Mavraki, N. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment
Impacts of Offshore Wind Farm Construction on Harbour Porpoises: Acoustic Monitoring of Echolocation Activity using Porpoise Detectors (T-PODs) Carstensen, J., Henriksen, O., Teilmann, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change, Noise Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
The large-scale impact of offshore wind farm structures on pelagic primary productivity in the southern North Sea Slavik, K., Lemmen, C., Zhang, W., Kerimoglu, O., Klingbeil, K., Wirtz, K. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Invertebrates
Impacts of OWF installations on fisheries: A Literature Review Bat, L., Sezgin, M., Sahin, F. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Displacement, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Ecosystem Processes, Physical Environment, Fish, Human Dimensions, Fisheries, Legal & Policy
Postdevelopment Experiments to Detect Anthropogenic Disturbances: The Case of Sea Ducks and Wind Parks Guillemette, M., Larsen, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Waterfowl, Birds
Assessing larval connectivity for marine spatial planning in the Adriatic Bray, L., Kassis, D., Hall-Spencer, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates, Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
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