This One Is for the Birds

This summer an NFRC staff member was riding the Bainbridge Island ferry in Washington, using the new passenger walk-on bridge, and was happy to see that all the windows were bird safe (see below). While waiting to board, many passengers commented on the glass design, the merits, and were curious about the use and availability in homes.

The photos were shared and discussed among staff. At the time, I thought, “This might be an interesting topic for the blog,” but I set it aside because it is already a topic discussed in the industry. It’s been discussed at many industry meetings, documents are being developed, and products are available to mitigate the problem.

So, what changed my mind?

Each year, new reports come out that draw attention to this issue. Where the once staggering estimate that “up to” one billion birds die each year from window strikes, research published just this month (August 2024) concludes that “These findings, along with our estimate of delayed mortality, suggest that overall collision mortality estimates based on carcass collection far exceed one billion birds in the U.S. each year.”

As expected, this report caught the attention of animal and bird organizations nationwide, which, combined with news organizations ran stories, like this one from the Washington Post, and this one, from The Guardian.

I haven’t read all the articles that came out, of course. It’s depressing after even the first one. But none of the reports I read refer to any window manufacturers, glazing companies or window film companies as potential solutions to reducing bird strikes. In a mention of groups that are working on solutions, bird and animal advocacy groups, biologists and researchers, and even green building groups are listed, but not us. Browser searches for solutions are primarily DIY efforts or links to places that sell decals that you can plaster over windows.

I suspect we’re not voicing our concerns, discussions and solutions externally. This seems like a prime opportunity for the industry.

If I needed to replace a window broken by a bird, I would like a product that deterred bird strikes. Can I find that on any of your websites for window replacement? I’m in the industry and I would know where to get what I need but does the average consumer?

For undamaged windows that get hit repeatedly, I’d prefer to apply a film with the pattern I need over a more complicated or unsightly DIY job. Is that easy for the general consumer to find? We know these products are available but are we taking it for granted that others know?

While there is a bit of a “phew, at least windows aren’t being blamed” relief, I’m inclined to think we have a much bigger role to play in this discussion and some potentially advantageous partnerships to make with allied organizations looking to solve a massive problem.

There are other benefits to jumping into these conversations. With the increased recognition of the environmental impact of so much loss, city, state and federal governments are following the attention. Not only will this result in more regulations, but it will also increase demand as soon as regulatory discussion begins. If the industry is involved in the early external conversation, we can be prepared to meet demand and provide education.

I’m not pointing fingers. NFRC hasn’t commented on the topic externally either. We have a consumer-oriented website (efficientwindows.org) and this topic isn’t covered there. We’re working on that. If you have products that are available to consumers to reduce bird strikes, please email communications@nfrc.org and we will include that information as a resource for consumers.

In the meantime, bird migration for the fall season in North America has already started and runs through the end of November. This is the time of year when bird strikes are the most common. Here are some tips for helping migrating birds:

• Close blinds at night;
• Reduce lights around the outside of buildings at night or limit duration;
• Green and blue lights are less attractive to birds than red, white, and yellow lights;
• Have external lights pointing down or have shades that direct light down instead of up toward the sky; and
• Replace or apply the appropriate window film to windows that are problematic.

Finally, sometimes birds knock on windows because they want food. And they always get it.