ok, so I work at the library, and we have these birds that ALL DAY have been flying into the big windows, full speed, and dropping dead, straight to the ground. why? b/c we have crab apple trees, which the fruits have fallen off of this winter, of course, and they are eating them, getting drunk, and not realizing that the windows are not the real sky. WTF!!!!

Seriously, there is one dying like every minute. The maintenance guy is putting up stuff to keep them away, like tin plates nad such, the library looks like a weird garbage sculputure...there's another one...right now.

anyone?

This isn't the prettiest option, but I have one window covered in newspaper because this one bird was always flying into it (and always surviving). Perhaps you can frost them, or get a static cling "privacy" thingie. One of these jobbies:
>http://www.gilafilms.com/home/privacy.html

*hands over award for most unusual thread title in a while*

oh man, that's very sad. Please, please put up curtains?? And take away those apples. ETA: at least I think curtains would help if they covered the entire windows?

yes, the janitor is trying his best to do something, he's been working on it all day. But you have to understand, its the main public library, the windows are HUGE. There just isn't stuff around to cover it up. The apples are everywhere, all over the ground, the trees themselves, mushed into the grass, etc. what a mess.

it seems to be getting better, esp. with the sun starting to fade.

its just gross to be working and hearing this "thunk" every few minutes.

eta: I guess they do this, this time every few years.

we got ahold of a vet who will take some who are still alive and try to fix them, so one patron at least is going to take a few there.

they are def. drunk though, its so strange, like a scene from "the birds"

you don't have to cover up the whole window i don't think. Maybe put some posters or bright paper up in the windows. just something that is bright hopefully the birds will see it. cut outs would work too! maybe some bright easter egg cutouts or something like that.

Anything that would change the reflection from the outside will stop the birds from flying into it. Although, it is not just because of the crab apple trees, i see this all the time downtown because of the big reflective buildings.

maybe cut out big, scary looking bird shapes in black paper and position them randomly on the windows?

You know that pressed faerie book? Maybe hang those images in the window as a warning.

I saw a product once for this, cling images of birds made to look like they were flying away from the window. I have no idea if this actually works.

Maybe incorporate this into a theme? Play Hitchcock's "The Birds"? Sounds like a macabre way to spend the afternoon.

Now I just sound crazy. :) Really, I like birds, and hopefully something can be done soon.

for some reason I thought this would be about the thorn birds. I second the suggestion of using cut outs, it helps the birds see the window better...they make clings for that very reason.

I hope the birdies are ok!
jt

- yes clings! They make silhouettes of predator birds that you can stick to the window that should help out.

In the crafty thread someone just posted that you can make your own window clings with t-shirt paint (that puffy paint stuff) on wax-paper. As you work at a library finding and blowing up on the copy machine a hawk silhouette should be fairly simple. Then place that under the wax paper and trace over the image with black paint! You could do a variety of shapes to make it more visually attractive...

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ok. so after I left work today, I counted at least 6 dead birds on our lawn, and that was after the janitor cleaned them up. ew.

BUT the windows look GREAT, there is all sorts of shit hanging from the third story roof and dangling in front on the windows...big blocks of syrafoam, tin plates, even "just married" streamers. hehe. a friend of mine came in and was like "what is that? some sort of artwork?".

i love hte sticky bird siloutte thing. I'll have to tell that to doug, our famed maintence guy. he feels really bad for the birds.

I should try the rotten apples and see if they get me drunk. cheap thrills, ya know?

best thread ever. Its sad, but the image of the library is just...hilarious!

yes, and it does sound like art. Any chance we can see a pic?

My mom has a big picture window and birds were always running in to it. She cut out big bat shapes out of black construction paper and just taped them up. They were especially cool at Halloween :-) It worked, though. Maybe if the library has a kids' program they could help trace and cut out bat shapes to help the birds, it could be like a learning/helping others experience. And it would cost less than window clingies.