Help Birds Survive

Action of the Month for April

​Birds provide humans with so many benefits. Their colors can be beautiful, their songs can bring us joy and peace, and their behaviors can inspire wonder and appreciation. Practically speaking, they help control insect populations, disperse seeds for plants we need, decrease the spread of disease by consuming carcasses, and pollinate plants we need and enjoy.

Basic Action: Protect birds from dangers that are human-caused

Birds need our help now! The Cornell Lab of Ornithology reports that nearly 3 billion birds have disappeared from the U.S. and Canada in the last 50 years. The population of 40% of bird species worldwide are decreasing, including over half of all prairie birds. One in eight species are threatened by extinction.
 
We can be part of the solution! We can make improvements in our own environments that can safeguard bird lives. Birds need our help in to reduce these three important dangers:

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• Window strikes
• Habitat risks
• Cats

Window Strikes
The leading human-cause of bird mortality may be window strikes. Audubon Pennsylvania reports that the low estimate is that at least a million birds are killed per day by window strikes. This is because of both reflections and see-through effects of windows. Reflections in a window cause the birds to think they see natural space to fly into when the window reflects that. If windows are lined up across rooms so that birds see through the closest window, through a room, and out the window on the other side to the outdoors, they do not sense the windows blocking their route through.

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​50% of the collisions leave no evidence below the windows because many birds that strike windows fly off and die later of their concussions and internal injuries. They can suffer for days before the end. And if that bird is a parent, their young are likely to die as well without their care. Numerous robins and cedar waxwings die by collision.

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Window collisions are preventable by making your windows visible to birds in order to prevent window strikes. Treat your windows that face bird feeders or good bird habitat first. Here are some easy and economical ways to reduce bird window strikes:

• Close blinds in rooms you are not actively using at the time and in rooms that get bird strikes.

Note: At night, close your home blinds and turn off lights you are not using, particularly in any rooms with skylights. Some birds use constellations to steer them on their migration paths and night lighting from inside and outside of buildings confuse their navigation abilities.

• Use window screens to alert birds to the presence of windows.
• Check these links to find possible ways to make windows noticeable to birds and avoid strikes.
  • Acopian birdsavers for window treatments you can buy or make yourself
  • Feather friendly products for residential, commercial, or do-it-yourself window treatment supplies
  • CollidEscape for a variety of window treatments

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​Bird habitats
Bird habitats have been degrading and destroyed in grasslands, forests, oceans, and neighborhoods.

• If you feed birds only in the winter, expand to feeding them in the spring as well. Spring is a crucial time when they need extra food sources.
  • Less of their regular food is available in the spring before seeds, insects, spiders, or caterpillars come out.
  • Some birds arrive from migration needing to build up their energy quickly after a long journey or while their migration is in progress.
  • In the spring breeding season, bird parents need extra food as they search for food for their young as well as themselves during this season.

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• Create and protect clean bird water sources, from sips and baths in your back yard to wetlands for breeding and migration.
• Plant native plants to provide the kinds of foods, insects, caterpillars, and spiders, that native birds need.
• Help birds find cover in your yard with brush, bushes, or trees for  during bad weather and nesting time.
• Replace part of your lawn with native plants, especially ones that may increase the caterpillar population needed for the baby birds. Use the Audubon search for native plants by zip code to discover  native plants for your area and the birds they attract.
• Reduce or eliminate using pesticide, herbicide or fertilizer in order to keep birds, your pets, and your family healthier. These products can harm bird reproduction systems as well as kill birds. Pesticides you use to kill insects end up destroying birds’ food. 67 million birds die from pesticide each year. Let birds destroy your garden pests instead of using pesticides that destroy birds. (And compost can be better for your plants than harmful products.)

• Reduce use of plastics and advocate reducing the production of plastics. Water birds eat plastics when it looks like food. They may even feed it to their young. Plastic is toxic to birds, causing starvation when they consume enough to feel full but get no nutrition.

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,Cats
​We love our pets. And one of the best ways to protect feline pets is to keep them safely indoors. This also protects the bird population. Free-roaming cats kill about 2 billion birds a year and have contributed to extinction of some species. Even well-fed cats kill birds, so they do not kill just because they need food.
 
Cat owners, there are some actions you can take to benefit both your pets and the birds outdoors. Bring your cats indoors so that they are not subject to danger from vehicles or other animals, and it will also protect the bird population. Neuter or spay cats. Bring strays to the animal shelter for care and to find good homes. If you are committed to your cat being outside, use a collar with a bell on it to warn birds or tie on a brightly-colored little neckerchief that will show birds their movements nearby. You can love your cat and love the birds.

Advanced Actions: Learn about and advocate for bird survival

• Take steps to reduce bird strikes at windows where you work by contacting the people who are make decisions about the building facilities. Advocate that protections be added so that birds can recognize windows to avoid flying into them. You can use links found in the window strike section above to show the kinds of window treatments that save bird lives.
• Or join a bird conservation group like national Audubon, local Sacajawea Audubon, or Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

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