5 Things You Can Do To Help Birds Have A Safer Spring Migration [Week 14]
Amanda Drews, 6 minute read
You know Spring is near in the Midwest when the birds start coming back! Help birds have a safer spring migration with some simple steps no matter where you live.
- When are birds migrating in the Spring?
- Which birds are migrating?
- How can you help migrating birds?
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When are birds migrating in the Spring?
According to the US Fish and Wildlife Services, Late April into May is typically the peak for spring migration for birds in the Midwest. Another way you can tell the birds have started migrating is to open your window and listen! They will be busy tweeting and singing. For many people in cold climates, it’s a welcome sound that indicates winter is almost over.
Which birds are migrating?
Spring migration can give you a chance to see birds that may not live around your area year round but are just passing through. That also means we need to help keep the visiting birds safe that may not be aware of the dangers on our properties.
In the Midwest (from US Fish and Wildlife Services and nature.org), some early migrants include:
- red-winged blackbirds
- ruby-crowned kinglets
- golden-crowned kinglets
- eastern phoebes
- eastern bluebirds
- yellow-bellied sapsuckers
- bufflehead
- red-breasted merganser
- goldeneye
- redhead
- scaup
Late arrivals include:
- house wrens
- white-throated sparrows
- Baltimore orioles
- rose-breasted grosbeaks
- black and white warblers
- whooping cranes
- vireos
- flycatchers
How can you help migrating birds?
1. Prevent window strikes.
When windows are highly reflective, birds may confuse the reflection as actual space they fly through. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology estimates up to a billion birds die annually in the United States due to window strikes. Your year-round birds may know where they can safely fly around your property but the visiting birds passing through might not.
Identify which areas around your house are most problematic for bird strikes so you can concentrate on fixing those issues first. I get it, you didn’t buy that nice big picture window just to cover it up. At least consider coverings during migration though. Just think of all the feathered friends you will save!
Use patterns on your problem windows with stripes or some other visual to alert birds that there is a solid object there. The American Bird Conservancy recommends stripes to be at least 1/8″ wide and spaced 2″ apart. Dot patterns can be used if their diameter is at least 1/4″. It doesn’t have to be just stripes or dots, you can make beautiful artwork out of it! They have more options, including options for large buildings, here.
If you don’t want stripes on the window, you can hang dark colored parachute chord to make an acopian bird saver or “zen curtain”. Birdsavers.com has some great instructions on how to make one yourself with the materials below or you can buy one of theirs here.
We use reusable stickers from kids activity books so there are barnyard and rainforest animals all over our big windows. There are classier decals out there though like leaves, snowflakes and butterflies.
2. Make window strikes less impactful when they do happen.
Duluth Audubon Society recommends placing bird feeders either within 3 feet of windows or over 30 feet away. Being closer will ensure they aren’t flying at full speed upon impact if they hit a window after leaving a feeder. However, if you have predators that could use your house to hunt birds, further away may be a better option.
Place screens on the outside of your windows. If a bird does fly into them, they should bounce off or at least get a little bit of cushioning when they hit. You can order magnetic screening or install curtain rods to the top and bottom of the outsides of your windows. Add hooks and cable ties to be able to easily take the screen off when needed.
3. Help keep the sky dark at night.
Light pollution is having growing effects on wildlife from birds to sea turtles to amphibians. Predator prey interactions, mating rituals and navigation for animals are all interrupted with there is excess light at night. The International Dark Sky Association encourages people to turn off lights outside when they are not needed (of course, consider your safety as well, depending on where you live.) Every little bit helps decrease light pollution as well as saves energy.
If you are installing new lights any time soon, consider buying IDA Dark Sky Approved fixtures and bulbs. These fixtures should cast light downward and have a Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of under 3,000. Basically try to minimize glare and light scatter.
Take a walk around your house and consider every light you have outside. When is it used? Is it on a timer? Does it serve a higher function for more than just looking nice? HERE are some more details on choosing lights for your home.
4. Keep your cats indoors
Cats that will hunt and kill birds can obviously be a big threat to our feathered friends. Keeping cats indoors also prevents a lot of injuries to your pet. I’ve seen too many of those while working at a vet clinic.
5. Clean out your bird feeders
Every once in a while, make sure to clean out your bird feeders. They can get diseases from dirty objects just like we can! The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project Feeder Watch reports the results from an article from the Wilson Journal of Ornithology that tested different methods of cleaning bird feeders. Feeders had to be free of seeds and debris before cleaning. They found using mild dish soap and water works but isn’t as effective as a diluted bleach (1 part bleach to 9 parts water) solution soak when it comes to reducing levels of Salmonella. I prefer to use the dish soap but if you do go the bleach route, just make sure you rinse REALLY REALLY well!
Edit: In my video, I shouldn’t have dumped my dirty seeds out onto the ground. Those should have been composted.
Thanks for all the help from my fellow Minnesota Master Naturalist and avid birder friend Debbie Reynolds for all the great information and to Stephanie Beard for some great pictures!
If you are interested in learning more about birds, these are Debbie’s favorite go-to books: The Sibley Guide to Birds by David Allen Sibley and Living on the Wind Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensaul.
- Assess the windows around your home for issues. Have you had bird strikes there before? How far away are they from your bird feeders? Are they reflective?
- Decide which method(s) to use to protect birds. Zen curtains, window stripes, decals, screens?
- Clean out your bird feeders!
- Assess the lighting around your home. To move on to Week 15 and dive more into the issue of light pollution and how to solve it, click HERE.
