Welcome to the VIU Bird-Window Collision Project!
In Canada, bird-window collisions are responsible for the death of 16-42 million birds annually (second only to predation by domestic and feral cats). Both clear and reflective windows are the most problematic as they permit either a direct reflection of avian habitat or are transparent and imperceptible to birds.
Evidence of strikes may be found on the ground, on windows, or the collision may be observed in real-time. Ground evidence include feather piles, injured birds, or carcasses. On windows there may be residual dust marks or feathers.
It was previously unknown if bird-window collisions were a significant issue at the Vancouver Island University (VIU) Nanaimo campus. Kaitlin Ovcharov, a previous VIU biology student found that bird strikes were in fact a severe problem at VIU after surveying selected buildings on campus between September 2017 to February 2018. Kaitlin identified problematic buildings including the Library (Building 305) and the Arts and Science building (Building 355). Possible contributing factors included high percent glass coverage, window reflectivity/transparency, proximity/type of vegetation, and other possible contributing factors.
Another survey was conducted by VIU Biology student Caitlynn Bright from June 2018 to February 2019 in order to see if collisions differed from the previous year in any meaningful way, as well as to see if there was an increase in bird strikes during summer and fall migration compared to the winter. To see a summary of their findings, please go to the results page.
As a result of their findings, Building 355 (one of our “collision hot-spots”) has since been outfitted with high-density dot decals to help birds see our windows and avoid collisions.
In continuation of this project, as of September 2022, Biology student Alysia Boudreau will continue surveys of the same buildings and evaluate the effectiveness of the dots placed on building 355 in reducing window collisions, and determine if other Buildings would benefit from similar remediation.
The VIU community has played a substantial role in finding bird window collisions on campus. We would like to thank everyone who participated in our studies, your support has been greatly appreciated!
If you have any questions, comment or concerns regarding the project, please contact Dr. Eric Demers, PhD, RPBio at eric.demers@viu.ca.
