Habitat Use of Birds on a High-Mounted Agrivoltaic Trial Plot

Agrivoltaic is the dual use of land for agriculture and solar energy generation and can therefore be an opportunity to prevent land-use conflicts with food production in the context of renewable energy expansion. At the same time, agrivoltaic could have an impact on biodiversity, especially on farmland birds. We investigated the habitat use of birds on a high-mounted agrivoltaic trial plot with chive culture (Allium schoenoprasum) in northern Germany. Over a one-year period, we surveyed bird use on the agrivoltaic plot, in three neighboring plots (without agrivoltaic but also cultivated with chives of different age-classes) and an intervening tree row at two-week intervals using standardized bird counts. Additionally, we detected bird use within the agrivoltaic plot and an adjacent control plot by camera traps. The results of the bird counts showed no significant differences in the number of species per visit between the agrivoltaic and the other chive plots (except the tree row) as well as in the number of observations per visit between agrivoltaic and any of the other plots. However, the direct comparison of agrivoltaic and control showed that the number of species and observations per visit were higher on the agrivoltaic. Camera trapping revealed no difference between agrivoltaic and control in terms of the number of bird species and detections per camera trap. Most of the species with high presence on the agrivoltaic were widespread, common species, adapted to anthropogenic structures, like White Wagtail and Black Redstart. In contrast, the Yellow Wagtail, a species of open landscapes, showed a higher visit frequency and use intensity on the control. Overall, the investigated agrivoltaic did not appear to prevent habitat use of most farmland birds-apart from bird species of open landscapes. However, there is a considerable need for further research on the effects of agrivoltaic on birds and biodiversity.