The wildlife strikes back: determining the secondary strike risk associated with a mammal--aircraft collision

Ball, Samantha , Caravaggi, Anthony , Kelly, Thomas C , Keogh, Gerry , Butler, Fidelma (2025). The Journal of Wildlife Management. e70071.

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Summary

Wildlife collisions with aircraft are a growing safety concern, but most research focuses only on the first strike, not the risk of scavengers or predators causing a secondary strike. At Dublin Airport in Ireland, which sees nearly 24 hare strikes per year, researchers used motion-activated cameras and rat carcasses to mimic hare strikes. Over 82 trials, Hooded Crows were the main species attracted, finding carcasses in about five hours and staying briefly. Mammals arrived later and spent even less time. The results suggest that the airport’s current practice of quickly removing carcasses and temporarily closing runways is effective at preventing secondary strikes, keeping both wildlife and flights safer.

BibTeX

@article{ball2025wildlife,
 author = {Ball, Samantha and Caravaggi, Anthony and Kelly, Thomas C and Keogh, Gerry and Butler, Fidelma},
 journal = {The Journal of Wildlife Management},
 number = {7},
 pages = {e70071},
 title = {The wildlife strikes back: determining the secondary strike risk associated with a mammal--aircraft collision},
 volume = {89},
 year = {2025}
}