Bird-Window Collisions at the VIU Nanaimo Campus (project website)
Undergraduate research project by Kaitlin Ovcharov (2017-2018; poster)
and Caitlynn Bright (2018-2019; poster)
Windows are one of the most common anthropogenic causes for bird mortality. Birds collide with the glass in an attempt to fly into the apparent habitat that these windows reflect. Bird strikes occur at Vancouver Island University (VIU), but the severity of the issue had not been previously examined.
This study aimed to determine if bird-window collisions are severe at VIU by surveying eight buildings for bird strike evidence, including live and dead birds, feathers, and dust marks on the glass. The study was conducted in 2017-2019 using a combination of weekly surveys and citizen science contributions.
A total of 438 evidences of window strikes were recorded between September 2017 and February 2019 at the eight buildings surveyed at VIU. Over 50% of bird-window collisions (227 out of 438) were detected on Building 355 (Arts and Sciences). This building is highly reflective and near wooded areas, factors thought to increase the likelihood of increase collision events.
It is estimated that applying a cost-effective collision prevention method to Building 355 alone could save approximately 200 birds annually from bird-window collision mortality.
