Glass houses: A death trap for birds?
Oct 27, 2006
EVER noticed a bird repeat-<br>edly pecking at the car <br>mirror or window?
By Hussein K. Ssezibwa
EVER noticed a bird repeat-
edly pecking at the car
mirror or window?
At a house along Kasirye road
in Rubaga, a cleaner hold-
ing three lifeless birds –
two bulbuls (ssosolye) and a sunbird, explained that the birds had hit the glass window and that on average, he finds between two to eight dead or injured birds per week. A staff at the Miracle centre Cathedral complained of a regular death rate of birds, especially egrets which live in the area that fly into the tinted plate windows.
And at Kisozi house, Robert Atibaku, a guide and security headman at the premises, revealed seeing birds die after they flew into the tinted glass of the windows.
But why do birds do that?
Mirror, tinted and black glass reflect the skyline and surroundings confusing the birds which crash into them, taking them for trees or the open sky.
But also “some birds are of territorial nature so when they imagine another bird is in the territory, they tend to fight. This may cause them to strike the reflective glass,†said Ambrose Mugisha, the deputy executive director of Nature Uganda.
At Hajji Tamale’s residence in Kabowa, birds are usually seen flying into or pecking hard at the glass facades either trying to get nector from the reflected flowers or warding off other birds.
Also at the NEMA office buildings, on Jinja Road, birds peck at the windows to presumably fight off other birds which they see as reflections of themselves. The effect of this constant laborious knocking on hard glass could be fatal to the birds’ later life.
Clear expansive glass also brings confusion to the birds, drawing them to hit the obstacles head on.
At Bijja hotel in Masindi recently, a dove flew through an open window and tried to fly out through a closed one. It flew hard into the glass window of the conference hall and died instantly. I was told that this often occurs. It is reported that some people unintentionally walk into the clear glass doors of Entebbe Airport.
In the same way, birds may mistake clear glass for open space because they simply cannot see it, which is why they collide into it, break their necks or suffer concussion and die of brain hemorrhaging.
Although there have not been any comprehensive studies in the country to reveal its full impact, glass could be leading to the loss of a substantial number of birds, especially indigenous ones.
EVER noticed a bird repeat-
edly pecking at the car
mirror or window?
At a house along Kasirye road
in Rubaga, a cleaner hold-
ing three lifeless birds –
two bulbuls (ssosolye) and a sunbird, explained that the birds had hit the glass window and that on average, he finds between two to eight dead or injured birds per week. A staff at the Miracle centre Cathedral complained of a regular death rate of birds, especially egrets which live in the area that fly into the tinted plate windows.
And at Kisozi house, Robert Atibaku, a guide and security headman at the premises, revealed seeing birds die after they flew into the tinted glass of the windows.
But why do birds do that?
Mirror, tinted and black glass reflect the skyline and surroundings confusing the birds which crash into them, taking them for trees or the open sky.
But also “some birds are of territorial nature so when they imagine another bird is in the territory, they tend to fight. This may cause them to strike the reflective glass,†said Ambrose Mugisha, the deputy executive director of Nature Uganda.
At Hajji Tamale’s residence in Kabowa, birds are usually seen flying into or pecking hard at the glass facades either trying to get nector from the reflected flowers or warding off other birds.
Also at the NEMA office buildings, on Jinja Road, birds peck at the windows to presumably fight off other birds which they see as reflections of themselves. The effect of this constant laborious knocking on hard glass could be fatal to the birds’ later life.
Clear expansive glass also brings confusion to the birds, drawing them to hit the obstacles head on.
At Bijja hotel in Masindi recently, a dove flew through an open window and tried to fly out through a closed one. It flew hard into the glass window of the conference hall and died instantly. I was told that this often occurs. It is reported that some people unintentionally walk into the clear glass doors of Entebbe Airport.
In the same way, birds may mistake clear glass for open space because they simply cannot see it, which is why they collide into it, break their necks or suffer concussion and die of brain hemorrhaging.
Although there have not been any comprehensive studies in the country to reveal its full impact, glass could be leading to the loss of a substantial number of birds, especially indigenous ones.