Optical illusion spooks raptors

Researchers from the CNRS and Université de Rennes 1 ¹ , in collaboration with Airbus, have designed a visual pattern that elicits long-term avoidance of high-risk areas by raptors. The scientists' work clears the way for further investigation into the visual cognition of these birds, and it has applications for conservation, because raptors are among the most common victims of collisions with planes and wind turbines. Their findings are published in PLOS ONE (October 11, 2018). Despite their exceptional visual acuity, raptors do not detect some obstacles like glazed surfaces, or they are too late in detecting certain moving objects, like planes. In France, over 800 collisions of birds with planes are reported each year. As available deterrent systems are hardly effective with raptors, scientists from the Éthologie Animale et Humaine (Ethos) research laboratory sought to develop a new means of repelling these birds from specific areas. Applying current knowledge about vision in these species, the team first observed how captive raptors reacted to a series of visual stimuli.