Desert Tortoise and Wind Turbines
Detailed Description
A desert tortoise in a landscape dominated by wind turbines at the Mesa field site where U.S. Geological Survey Research Ecologist Jeff Lovich has conducted research since 1995. The “wind farm”, one of many in the San Gorgonio Pass near Palm Springs, California, has 460 turbines and an associated infrastructure of access roads, substations and transformers. The tortoise is wearing a radio transmitter that was removed at the end of the study.
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Related
USGS energy and wildlife research update (Sept 2025-March 2026)
Every year, USGS scientists work with partners across the country to better understand how energy development intersects with the natural world. The research summarized here highlights new findings from the first half of FY26, spanning topics from wildlife and habitat responses to oil, gas, wind, solar, and hydropower infrastructure to advances in ecological forecasting, restoration, and species...
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