by Kathy Ross

In daylight, by reflecting foliage or sky, windows look like inviting places to fly into. Birds also sometimes see their reflection in a window and attack it. This happens most frequently in the spring when territoriality is high.

At night, lights divert nocturnal migrants from their original path, especially in low-ceiling or foggy conditions. They can tend to mill around a window and collide with each other.

Because the sheer number of windows is so great, their toll on birds is huge. It is estimated about 1 billion birds die from window strikes in the US each year. Daytime collisions can be avoided in a variety of ways. The American Bird Conservancy’s pamphlet Stop Birds from Hitting Windows has great ideas for how to make your windows more bird friendly. It is available at https://abcbirds.org/get-involved/bird-smart-glass/.

Closing blinds after dark and turning off lights whenever possible will help birds at night.