A volunteer-driven project coordinated by the nonprofit Missouri River Bird Observatory with aim to reduce bird collisions with windows throughout the KC metro area.
BirdSafeKC
What is BirdSafeKC?
BirdSafeKC is a volunteer-driven project coordinated by the nonprofit Missouri River Bird Observatory. Our aim is to reduce bird collisions with windows throughout the KC metro area. We survey buildings to determine the most collision-prone windows and work with building owners and managers to implement cost-effective solutions.
Window collisions are the second highest cause of direct mortality in the United States, and KC is ranked the seventh-worst city for bird mortality. Solutions include minor adjustments to landscaping, treating windows with aftermarket mitigation products, building with bird-safe glass, and reducing artificial lighting on building exteriors.
Resources
Birds collide with glass because they see the world differently than people do. These collisions kill up to 1 billion birds each year in the United States. We provide some helpful resources for making your home or business safer for birds.
01
Residential Resources
Approximately 44% of avian window collisions in North America occur on residential structures and you have probably had birds strike the windows of your home at some point! You can significantly reduce window strikes happening by taking a few simple steps.
Buildings of any size don’t have equal numbers of bird strikes on every window and you probably already know the windows of your home into which birds most frequently fly. There are products and DIY ways to treat those windows. The American Bird Conservancy has extensive resources on the topic and you can find some of our recommended treatments here.
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Commercial Resources
Approximately 56% of avian window collisions in North America occur on commercial structures. While it is common to hear about the most dramatic window strike events when they occur on high rises (for example, this incident in Texas), most collisions occur on low-rise buildings less than 10 stories high.
Causes of bird-window collisions
Birds strike windows because they do not recognize glass as a barrier. Several factors cause birds to become confused and fly into windows - find out more here.
Volunteer with BirdSafeKC!
Interested in volunteering?
Volunteers are absolutely critical to the project and the majority of volunteer work is done within the BirdStrikes survey arm of the project. Surveyors walk designated routes in the Kansas City metro area looking for bird carcasses/injured birds that have struck windows.
Once found, data points are collected to include species and which part of the building the bird hit. Data is collected within the iNaturalist app and used to identify the most problematic windows on a particular building.
BirdSafeKC coordinators then attempt to partner with building owners to treat the windows that are most dangerous to birds. Project volunteers often assist in that partnership by having acted as ambassadors throughout the survey seasons.
Before you can start volunteering, and to better understand the project, the below training video must be watched.
results & Reports
All of the reports from the beginning of the BirdSafeKC project in 2019 to the most recent report.
Data Overview
97
Species Identified
1727
Survey Hours
34
Properties
Surveyed
32
Volunteers