The effect of windmill closure on the movement patterns of ungulates along the auob riverbed

Abstract

Three groups of six consecutive windmills along the Auob riverbed were closed down for periods of one year and the responses of the three major ungulate species in the area to this practice were studied. The movements of springbok Antidorcas marsupialis and gemsbok Oryx gazella were not found to be affected by the windmill closure, but blue wildebeest Connochaetes taurinus showed significant tenden- cies to move out of areas in which windmills were closed.