Electricity lines can positively contribute to biodiversity. In collaboration with the Ornithological Association Ornis Italica , 550 nest boxes suitable for bird nesting were placed  on Terna’s  pylons in the past few years (over 300 nest boxes were placed in Lazio, 120 in Emilia Romagna, 80 in Lombardy, 30 in Puglia and 14 in Umbria).

From the very beginning, these artificial nests have attracted numerous birds. Over time, the presence of raptors increased further: inspections found that 94% of the nest boxes were occupied by couples of kestrels, a small hawk species used to living in a man made environment.

Kestrels do not build their own nests but occupy those of other species: the nest boxes arranged and placed on the pylons represent therefore an attractive opportunity for nesting. Each year over one thousand young kestrels take flight from the nest boxes on the pylons.

By ringing the birds, the researchers of Ornis Italica have discovered that kestrel couples have a tendency of going back to the same nest, from season to season. The success of this initiative is confirmed by the data relative to the resident population of kestrels in the city of Rome: they increased from about 60 couples before the installation of the nest boxes to the present 300.

In the 2010 breeding season, starting in the middle of March, monitoring was conducted on the nest boxes mounted onto the pylons to determine their use by the kestrels and for the collection of breeding data. An inspection of the nests has allowed determining the size of the brood and lay date, in addition to evaluating the breeding success.

In the spring of  2010, a group of six kestrel nests were installed  in the area of Perugia and one of the 87 nests – intended for hawks, cuckoos and marine jays – in the territories of  Ferrara and Parma.

In collaboration with Ornis Italica, Terna continues to support the “Birdcam” project: cameras were installed on artificial nests allowing the on-line watching of the birds during the breeding period, on Terna’s Web site and on www.birdcam.it. The project is of specific scientific value, because it allows researchers who operate remotely to watch the animal’s behavior. In 2011, the “Birdcam” project started in January: subject of the shooting was the Aria and Vento nest, a couple of peregrine falcons whose nest is located on a building of the Università degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza.