India’s wind farms might be endangering bats, say wildlife experts

As India’s renewable energy market diversifies, wind farms have emerged as an underexplored threat to bats. Globally, millions of bats die every year when they collide into wind turbines as they fly.

Currently, bat species across the world face significant threats such as habitat loss from deforestation and agriculture, persecution, hunting, urbanisation, energy production, and climate change, according to a 2025 Fact Sheet by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species and Wild Animals (CMS). Yet conversations about biodiversity threats rarely acknowledge that climate solutions, such as renewable energy infrastructure, can themselves pose risks to biodiversity.

The latest State of Indian Bats report also brings attention to wind turbines as one of the threats affecting bat species.

However, there are data gaps in three major areas, bat researcher Rohit Chakravarty says. “One, what species are the most affected. Two, to what extent the mortality is and three, whether there are any seasonal patterns in the mortality across species,” he explains.

With about 135 bat species, India is home to roughly 10% of the global bat diversity. Of these, around sixteen are found only in India. According to Bat Conservation International, of the 122 species from India assessed by the IUCN, “only 23% have stable populations, with the rest decreasing”.

What is causing collisions?

While there is evidence of bats colliding with...

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