A study estimates that wind turbines in the US have killed approximately 18 to 19 million bats since 1981.

What it means

A new study published in PNAS estimates that approximately 18 million bats have been killed by collisions with wind turbine blades in the US since 1981, when the first large-scale wind farms were built. The figure is cumulative and based on models incorporating bat fatality data from various wind energy facilities across the country. This highlights a significant conservation concern, as bats are important for insect control and are already threatened by habitat loss and disease.

Accuracy & sourcesSourced

The claim is solidly anchored in a peer-reviewed paper in PNAS, one of the most respected scientific journals, and is reported by a reputable science news outlet (Phys.org). The estimate is model-derived and inherently uncertain, but the primary source provides the best available science on cumulative bat mortality from wind energy in the US.

How new

Genuinely new: the study itself is freshly published, and the cumulative 18-million figure was not previously available in the scientific literature.

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