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According to data gathered from GPS tags, a number of tagged harbor seals have been visiting offshore wind turbines in order to feed on prey that live on and around the man-made structures. According to the research team conducting the study, this is the first documented case of marine mammals feeding at a wind farm.

Eleven seals were seen visiting offshore farms in Sheringham Shoal in the U.K. and Alpha Ventus off the coast of Germany. The animals were seen moving in a “grid-like” pattern, moving directly from one turbine to another in a seemingly deliberate way.

Data also indicates that both harbor and gray seals forage around undersea pipes and are most likely attracted to fish like cod and whiting which are drawn to these man-made structures because of the invertebrates that grow on them.

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