Bird Vulnerability Assessments

Leading the Way

Normandeau is the leading authority on vulnerability assessments for birds that offshore birds.

Whether birds are migrating, foraging, staging, or a combination of these behaviors, some bird species are affected more than others by the presence of offshore structures and by different offshore activities.

Bird populations vary over space and time. Some species are very rare with small geographic ranges with almost the entire population moving over one of the Central- and North- American waters. Other bird species are more ubiquitous and only a small proportion of the population moves over water. Additionally, ocean use may be completely different for each species: Some birds make foraging trips to provision young; others stage during seasonal movements or periods of molt; and some species take a direct path and make no use of the ocean except as a migratory flyway, finding the shortest route to breeding or overwintering sites. During all activities, birds may be deflected from their pathway by anthropogenic activities occurring in the offshore space. Just as the morphology of bird species differs, so does the energetic cost of movement. Thus, the fitness toll differs for each species that is displaced from its pathway. These traits and many more are explored in Vulnerability Assessments.