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Painting wind turbines purple could stop them killing thousands of bats and birds each year according to new research.

The study, carried out by PhD students from Loughborough University, looked at how the colour of a wind turbine influences the number of insects that are attracted to it.

It was found that the most common colours for wind turbines of white and grey attracts insects which in turn draws bats and birds into the path of the turbine blades.

Speaking to the BBC PhD student Chloe Long of Loughborough University said: 鈥淚t had been speculated that insects may be attracted to turbine structures for some reason and this then could attract insectivorous species, such as birds and bats, to forage in the vicinity鈥�.

She added that: 鈥淥ur major conclusion from this work is that turbine paint colour could be having a significant impact on the attraction of insect species to the structure, both during the day and at night鈥�.

Rather than painting the wind turbines white or grey the research suggests that purple would dramatically reduce the number of insects, and therefore bats and birds.