PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — From hawks to hummingbirds, Philadelphia hosts approximately 300 species of resident and migratory birds. A group dedicated to protecting birds in urban environments is promoting bird-friendly window decals to help prevent fatal bird collisions.
Sister Cities Cafe on Logan Circle has three of its four walls made of glass. It's just one story high, but scores of birds flown into the reflective glass nonetheless, injuring themselves or dying.
Recently, dot decals were installed on the cafe’s windows to help birds steer clear of the glass hazard.
Audubon Society volunteer Stephen Maciejewski, who monitors bird collisions for Bird Safe Philly, was in the cafe as the dots were being installed. The job was almost done when suddenly there was a loud thud.
“There was a dead bird on the ground, a beautiful black and white wobbler,” he recalled. “So on this wall, this was the only area that was not covered in dots, And if you look, you can see there are leaves of a tree reflected in it and these birds fly pretty fast like 27 mph, and so it avoided the dots and it just picked an area. It saw green and It didn’t know that this was a reflection.”
The rest of the dots were quickly installed.
Bird Safe Philly was formed after more than 1,500 dead birds were found in one day three years ago on the streets of Center City. Since that time, there have been several efforts to help reduce bird strikes, including getting high-rises to dim or turn off their lights at night.
The push for all buildings, including homes, to have bird-friendly window decals, is the group's latest effort.
“There are many products available where a homeowner or business owner can address their windows,” explained Stephanie Egger, with the Wyncote Audubon Society.
“It doesn’t have to be Feather Friendly. That is one product that we use because we know it is effective, it is easy to install [and] it’s inexpensive. They offer a commercial version and then they offer two do-it-yourself versions. So a homeowner can pick up a little box for about $15-18.”
Experts say the dots need to be placed 2 inches by 2 inches apart to be effective. There are other inexpensive DIY methods that can easily be found online.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that up to 1 billion birds collide with glass every year.