For the first time this spring, we used drones to install bird diverters over an energized transmission line near the Delta Marsh, an internationally recognized Important Bird Area in southern Manitoba.
Similar to how you may put stickers on the outside of your house windows to prevent birds from flying into them, we put reflective, glow-in-the dark markers on some of our transmission lines to help birds see the line and avoid collisions.
Studies have shown that bird diverters can reduce collisions with our wires by 50 to 90 per cent.
Using drones to install bird diverters
The drone installation of bird diverters in action.
Caring for birds in all our work
May 13 marks World Migratory Bird Day – a day to recognize the need for the conservation of migratory birds and their habitats.
Manitoba Hydro works to lower our effects on birds in Manitoba by installing bird diverters on transmission lines, installing nest platforms for osprey, and providing nesting structures for rare and threatened species like peregrine falcons and barn swallows that nest on our infrastructure.
Peregrine falcon chicks that hatched at a Manitoba Hydro station.