What causes birds to impact windows?
Birds strikes are usually caused by reflections in the window that make it look like open air, or if two windows across from each other seem to make a tunnel (the birds look for the light and think they can get through). Hawks and other predators can also lead birds to hit windows as they try to escape.
There are multiple ways to cut down on or eliminate bird window collisions.
1. Window decals placed on the outside of the window.
Window decals are best placed on the outside of windows to avoid glare or reflection on the window from making them disappear and become useless. Anything from post-it notes to UV or shadow static cling decals can work. It just needs to let the birds know that there is an obstruction in the way and they can't fly through it.
UV decals look similar to frosted glass to us but will fluoresce a bright purple in birds eyes. Just keep in mind that UV decals will eventually wear out with exposure to sunlight and will need to be replaced. If you would like to test the effectiveness of UV decals for your windows, making a few scribbles with a yellow highlighter gives a similar effect, though it lasts a day or so at most.
Shadow decals are like the UV decals but black or dark gray. They usually aren't quite as effective but unlike UV decals there's nothing for the sun to wear out and they can last longer.
Both UV decals and shadow decals come in a variety of shapes and designs which matter only for your aesthetic purposes. Birds aren't going to look at the hawk decals and think it's actually a hawk.
Feather Friendly is a more permanent type of decal and consists of tiny squares spaced roughly 2" apart. Feather Friendly is designed to go across the entire window and they come in white or black squares. It works very well for glass deck panels.
2. Fruit tree netting pulled tight against the window.
It may be distracting for those inside the house at first, but especially for windows with a large surface area that's hard to cover in decals it can work great. Similar to the decals, it's just to let birds know that the window isn't open air.
3. Bird Scare Tape is a shiny roll of tape that should be hung in roughly 3 foot strands in front of the window. The strands will move in the wind and combined with the shimmering effect it tends to make birds wary and want to steer clear. Birds that are fleeing in a panic, especially from a predator, may disregard the scare tape in their alarm.
4. Cover the window from the outside to eliminate reflection completely. It doesn't tend to look very nice but putting up posterboard or another opaque covering on the window tends to take care of the problem quickly.
5. Close the blinds on windows across from each other to eliminate the tunnel look. If you have two windows directly across from each other, birds can look at the light coming through the far window and think there is somewhere for them to go.
6. Put feeders close to windows so birds will go to them instead of using the area as a flight path. We've noticed that feeders within a few feet or attached to windows tend to cut down on bird collisions, or at least make them far less fatal. Birds are slowing down to land on the feeder or just taking off and don't have the speed to hit windows as hard.
7. Turn unnecessary lights out at night as migrating birds are more likely to become confused or disoriented by lights left on at night while they are trying to navigate. This can lead to bird impacts, especially against taller buildings in their general flight path.
The Audubon Lights Out program (https://www.audubon.org/lights-out-program) has more information on light pollution and migratory birds.
What ways have proven effective for your backyard birds?
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