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BIRD COLUMN FOR May
14, 2006
By Benjamin P. Burtt Topic: A way to keep
Birds from Attacking their Reflection in a Window
A Readers Question:
Mr. Burtt, We have a female cardinal that keeps trying to fly into our
windows, what is up with this behavior? How can we deter her? L.B., Fayetteville,
NY. Dear L.B.: These
birds are planning to nest somewhere near your house. The male and often the
female of a species will try to drive away any other individual of the same
species that appears near their nest or in the territory where they plan to
nest. A bird interprets
its own reflection as an intruder and will waste so many hours trying to
drive it away that the nest often fails. This time might better be spent in
finding food or later in feeding young. For the home owner the thumps on the
glass are annoying and the glass get dirty. These “attacks” from a distance
of a foot or less seldom cause any serious injury, but sometimes the bird’s bill gets bloody. A number of methods
have been tried to reduce the reflection seen by the bird, but these have not
been very effective. A new idea using feathers was proposed by Stiles Thomas
of New Jersey in an article he wrote for Bird Watchers Digest. I tried it this spring and it stopped the
cardinal “attacks” at my big window that had been going on for two months.
CAPTION: Note how
well this window reflects the trees in our back yard. A bird that intends to
nest nearby will often see its own reflection in this window. It will peck at
its image and waste hours trying to drive the “intruder” away. These brightly
colored feathers suspended from monofilament fishing line and moving in the
wind apparently frighten the birds enough to keep them away from the window.
It is called “FeatherGuard. Two of the FeatherGuard strings are draped across
my window as show in the photograph. Each “FeatherGuard”
consists of a four foot length of monofilament fishing line fastened to the
window with a small suction cup on each end. The line is threaded and knotted
through a hole bored in the end of each feather shaft. The seven feathers
dangle and move in the wind. Apparently, the
birds are frightened by the moving feathers. It is thought that the sight of
loose feathers is a sign that a bird has been killed by a predator and so
other birds instinctively avoid the area. This device is also
effective in preventing high speed collisions where birds are killed by
hitting the reflection of your yard in the window. You can inquire about
the FeatherGuard or order one from Bird Watchers Digest by calling toll free ,1-800-879-2473. It will cost
about $9 for the product and postage. If you wish to order for a store that sells supplies for attracting
birds or you are a nature center, you
can inquire about getting some wholesale by calling the toll free number and asking for Josh or Andy for details. The mailing address is
Bird Watchers Digest, PO. Box 110, Marietta, OH, 45750. ==== ==== ============== ============= Benjamin P. Burtt
writes a column every other week on birds in the Post Standard. Write to him
by regular mail c/o Stars, P.0. Box 4915, Syracuse, N.Y. 13221 or via email
at features@syracuse.com ( put "Birds" in the subject field). ==============
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