Hey all...
I used to work on the GNSI Journal and newsletters and a year ago my husband and I opened a Wild Birds Unlimited store here in Eugene. It has been a very fun and intense learning experience, of course, but interacting with the people who come in has been really great.
It is true that the UV Window Alerts DO work. Here's why: birds can see into the ultraviolet range and these have a UV coating on them that makes them glow when birds see them. The company that makes them is here in Oregon, in Bend and they're great to deal with. In our store, we sell lots of them and I now buy them by the dozen since they do work well and so many people have issues like this.
My husband, Dan, is an ornithologist, as well, so the store's mission of course is right up our alley, and he's been able to make a difference locally in our increased visibility here to help do lots of bird education.
Some other recent research impacts one's decision on how to protect birds from window strikes, too, and that is research (I think done in PA) that showed that birds will try to fly between parachute cord (that 1/4" diam. greenish nylon cord) when it's hung in front of windows to deflect birds from striking them, as long as it's not wider apart than 4 1/25" apart. So, what that means, is that you should place things you want birds to regard so as to change their minds about flying through a space no less than 4" apart ideally. When the researchers placed the parachute cords 3.5" apart they were 100% able to deflect birds; at 4.25" they were only 80% effective at keeping birds from striking the windows beyond.
So, if you choose to use the stickers, make sure to pace them fairly close together!
Barbara Gleason
_
( '< * -*"*-.,,.-*"*-.,,.-*"*-.,,.-*"*-.,,.-*"*-.,,.-*"*-.,,.-*"*—
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//" "
Wild Birds Unlimited of Eugene
Barbara Gleason
Store phone: 541-844-1788
[log in to unmask]
2510 Willamette Street, Eugene, OR 97405
www.facebook.com/eugenewbu
www.eugene.wbu.com
On Mar 3, 2014, at 10:00 PM, SCIART-L automatic digest system wrote:
> There is 1 message totaling 246 lines in this issue.
>
> Topics of the day:
>
> 1. TAN: Hummingbird problem
>
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> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2014 18:44:35 -0500
> From: "Barry K. MacKay" <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: TAN: Hummingbird problem
>
> Yes, but as is true of the "hawk silhouettes" what works is anything that is
> on the window. Ordinary paper snowflakes work just as well as ones that
> reflect ultraviolet, IF they are on the outside of the window (I've
> experimented with them on the inside; that's better than nothing, but of
> course I see the whole problem as the ideal reason for not washing my
> windows, a policy I sometimes regret when I try to take photos through the
> glass, but hey, I'd rather have the birds safe.)
>
> The use of the hawk/falcon shape has an interesting history.
>
> It was Konrad Lorenz who did the research that showed that something roughly
> that shape...a cross sort of like the Christian cross with a short length
> above the crossbar, and a longer one behind, but with corners rounded, could
> elicit two different responses from newly hatched Greylag Geese if moved
> above them.
>
> Moved blunt end forward, it resembled the silhouette of a hawk...especially
> an accipiter....the genus that mostly eats birds...in that the short,
> rounded end was like the head, the longer trailing end like the tail, while
> the crossbar was the wings. When they saw that the goslings, who would not
> yet ever have encountered a real hawk, nevertheless took instinctive actions
> to avoid detection.
>
> But moved the opposite way, the long part became the head and neck of an
> adult goose, the rounded rear the shorter end of a goose in flight, and the
> goslings acted normally.
>
> Thus the reaction was judged innate, and hard-wired, in response to the
> appropriate stimulus.
>
> Even if the concept were valid for hummers and other birds, not just geese,
> the fact that the silhouette does not move blunt end forward would negate
> the effect. Any shape would do, and if you have young children getting them
> to make paper carnations will work, for example.
>
> Anyway, lots of good devices out there as well, but one word of caution:
>
> If using any kind of netting make sure it is taut and tight...not slack, as
> that can lead to entanglement.
>
> Barry
>
>
> Barry Kent MacKay
> Bird Artist, Illustrator
> Studio: (905)-472-9731
> http://www.barrykentmackay.ca
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: SciArt-L Discussion List-for Natural Science Illustration-
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sarah
> Sent: March-03-14 5:05 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [SCIART] TAN: Hummingbird problem
>
> I use these and it has made a difference. http://tinyurl.com/poohz88 Sally
>
> On Mon, Mar 3, 2014 at 2:45 PM, Chris Gralapp <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>> Bruce, thanks for this--I did marvel that two of our three hummers
>> were able to fly again after being stunned--and it makes perfect sense
>> that their lightness can be their salvation. Altho, at the speeds
>> that they zoom around, pure physics would dictate that even a light
>> little body at these speeds would have a force large enough to sustain
>> injury. They are remarkably resilient.
>> Yes, they are precious little gems! we have mostly Anna's and
>> Ruby-throateds, and occasionally Allen's. I know when Spring has come
>> when they do their dive-bombing dance complete with a shriek and the
>> end of the swoop. I was interested to learn that the shriek is
>> produced by their feathers and not a vocalization.
>>
>> Chris
>>
>>
>>
>> On 3/3/2014 11:07 AM, Bruce Bartrug wrote:
>>
>> Something on the outside usually helps, as it breaks the continuity of
>> the window. We've used falcon silhouettes and see-through maple
>> leaves, as indicated above. These are mostly effective but not
>> entirely. Chickadees feed directly underneath the falcons, for
>> example, and doves being chased by accipiters kill themselves on
>> windows with either. The only sure (almost
>> sure?) thing is strands of something very obvious strung across the
>> window on the outside. A screen, for example :). Some have used
>> colored yarn, spaced to alert birds but able to be seen through from
> indoors.
>>
>> Hummers usually only knock themselves out as they are so light weight.
>> I retrieved a couple from the floor inside a birding lodge in Ecuador
> once.
>> They were fighting one another (if hummingbirds were the size of
>> crows, it wouldn't be safe to go into the woods) and flew through on
>> open door and into the window on the inside. They recovered after a
>> short while and one tiny little jewel sat on my thumb for several
>> minutes, even allowing me to carefully stroke his nape. Precious little
> beasts.
>>
>> Best of luck,
>> b
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Mar 3, 2014 at 12:05 PM, Patricia Savage
>> <[log in to unmask]>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> I don't know if this is an option, but I don't wash my windows close
>>> to the feeders very often anymore and that has really cut down on the
>>> bird strikes. Maybe find a way to dirty them up?
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Cheers,
>>>
>>> Patricia Savage
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Mayapple Studio
>>>
>>> 919-859-2789 (h), 919-438-6766 (m)
>>>
>>> www.psavageart.com
>>>
>>> Join me on Facebook
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On 3/3/14 11:53 AM, Chris Gralapp wrote:
>>>
>>> I have a most distressing problem--I just installed a big, brand new
>>> bay window, and have had three hummingbirds hit it. I think it
>>> reflects the sky and the mountains, and the mirror effect deceives
>>> the little guys to fly into it. I moved my feeder about ten feet
>>> away, to keep them on the other side of the yard, if possible, but
>>> they still hit the window. It's just heartbreaking.
>>>
>>> I know there are decals for deterring bird strikes--any suggestions
>>> for the most effective?
>>>
>>> Chris
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>>
>>> Chris Gralapp, MA, CMI
>>>
>>> Medical/Scientific Illustration
>>>
>>> 415.454.6567
>>>
>>> [log in to unmask]
>>>
>>> chrisgralapp.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ________________________________________________
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>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Bruce Bartrug
>> Nobleboro, Maine, USA
>> [log in to unmask]
>> www.brucebartrug.com
>>
>> The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but
>> because of those who look on and do nothing. - Albert Einstein
>>
>> ________________________________________________
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>>
>> --
>>
>> Chris Gralapp, MA, CMI
>>
>> Medical/Scientific Illustration
>>
>> 415.454.6567
>>
>> [log in to unmask]
>>
>> chrisgralapp.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________________________
>>
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>
>
> --
> http://www.sallythibault.com
> [log in to unmask]
> Vinalhaven Island Memories 1950 - 1990
> Maine Coast, USA
>
> Nous connaîtrions-nous seulement un peu nous-mêmes, sans les arts?
> Could we ever know each other in the slightest without the arts?
> Gabrielle Roy (1909-1983
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