It is estimated that 100 million to 1 billion birds a year perish due to collisions with glass. In North America, some communities have enacted legislation aimed at protecting birds by calling for the design and installation of bird-safe glazing. Such glazing can be produced by printing human-visible, first-surface coatings on glass, in specific patterns. Another option is to print a UV-reflective coating on the glass to make use of the unique vision characteristics of birds. Such coatings have a lower visual impact on the human viewer. Candidate coatings have been tested at the Powdermill Avian Research Center in Rector, Pennsylvania, USA. Avoidance scores of 70 to 86% have been observed for the candidate coatings. The testing conditions and a description of the avoidance score will be discussed. An example of the use of the coating in an attractive design will be provided.
Glass Coatings Useful for the Prevention of Bird Collisions
