A new research partnership led by Boise State University is taking flight to solve one of today’s most complex conservation challenges: protecting golden eagles in wind energy landscapes.
Funded by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the project unites Boise State with Conservation Science Global and the U.S. Geological Survey to better understand how renewable energy development impacts golden eagle populations across California’s Altamont Pass and Tehachapi wind resource areas.
While wind energy supports global climate goals, it also presents an ecological paradox, its turbines are responsible for significant eagle mortality. Researchers hope this collaboration will change that balance.
“This award moves beyond documenting a problem, it equips us with the science to solve it,” said Stephanie Hudon, Boise State public health clinical program director and research associate professor in neuroscience. “It’s an example of how collaborative, interdisciplinary research can guide renewable energy development that supports both climate goals and wildlife conservation.”
A feather’s evidence
Boise State’s role in the project centers on genetics. The team will analyze DNA from more than 12,000 naturally shed golden eagle feathers, collected over the last decade by field biologists. These genetic samples will help researchers identify individual eagles, track their survival over time, and estimate population turnover across wind energy sites.
“This work allows us to reconstruct the life histories of individual birds,” said Hudon. “By identifying which eagles are surviving, dispersing, or returning, we can produce the most comprehensive demographic portrait of this species ever created.”
Stephanie Galla, assistant professor of avian biology and expert in conservation genetics, will co-lead the analytical portion of the project. Her lab specializes in using genetic markers to understand diversity and relatedness among wildlife populations.
“Genetics gives us a noninvasive way to tell the story of these birds,” Galla said. “Each feather carries evidence of survival, movement and resilience. When you combine that with ecological and flight data, it becomes a powerful conservation tool.”
The partnership between Boise State, USGS and Conservation Science Global builds on years of shared research and data collection. Together, the collaborators will integrate genetic findings with GPS telemetry, weather data and turbine maps to improve collision-risk models and guide smarter energy planning.
“By producing validated risk maps and demographic models, we can give state and federal agencies the tools they need to plan for coexistence rather than conflict,” Hudon said. “Our ultimate goal is to support both renewable energy development and wildlife protection.”
Hands-on conservation research experience for students
The project also creates new research opportunities for Boise State students. Graduate and undergraduate researchers will gain hands-on experience in conservation genomics, wildlife forensics, and applied environmental science, skills that prepare them for leadership in conservation and ecology.
“This work perfectly embodies Boise State’s Blue Turf Thinking,” Hudon said. “We’re crossing traditional boundaries between genetics, ecology and engineering to address a global conservation issue. And we’re doing it while training the next generation of scientists to lead this work.”
By the conclusion of the grant, the team expects to deliver the most detailed demographic data ever collected on golden eagles in North America, along with high-resolution collision-risk maps that can guide proactive turbine siting and operation.
Looking ahead, the Boise State researchers envision a future where wildlife and renewable energy can truly coexist.
“Instead of reacting to fatalities, agencies could use predictive dashboards to anticipate high-risk periods for eagles,” Galla said. “That shift, from reactive to preventative conservation, could transform how we manage both wildlife and energy systems.”
This project also lays the groundwork for broader efforts, including the development of long-term genetic monitoring networks for raptors across the western United States and potential applications for other species, such as California condors and ferruginous hawks.
For Hudon and Galla, the project represents years of persistence and partnership coming full circle.
“The data for this study have been gathered one feather at a time, over a decade,” Hudon said. “Now, all those small moments of fieldwork are converging into something that can truly change how we think about conservation and climate solutions.”