Kamikaze birds and big windows

Hello bird-lovers,

we live in a flat with very big windows all around. A big variety of birds drop by on our balcony on a daily base, many of them looking for food. The problem is that many of them fly directly into the windows and I don't know what to do about it. I have read up about this and up to now there seems to be no solution to this problem. Stickers on windows don't help either. Does anybody have their own private solution? None of them have injured themselves badly, but it won't be long untill they do. There are so many of them out here, many different types as well. I once went to aa beergarden at Schliersee and a little bird flew right past me smack into the window in front of me. It was killed instantaneously. I am worried that this will happen on my balcony as well.
Thanks for your advise,
MB

The big pictures of scary outlines of hawks and stuff doesn't slow them down?

What about hanging a couple of windmills in front of your balcony window then? Might slow them down as the try to zing past.

@showem

riiight. Then all TT'ers would know which flat I live in or I might just have japanese tourists coming over here to take pictures of all the quaint, romantic windmills in front of my bedroom window. Yeah, good idea.

Get a cat?

Well, I meant the little windmills kids have on sticks, not the big ones used to generate power or mill grain.

EDIT: I guess more properly called a pinwheel.

This:

Not this:

One of those big plastic crows maybe?

Try a Google search. Try the tips on eHow's "How to Prevent Birds From Flying Into Windows" article. I think the balcony netting is a good idea.

@ randy,

thanks for the link. Am definitely not putting a net around my balcony. It would make me feel caged in, besides the balcony is utterly huge! The stickers don't work either, when I was at Schliersee and the little bird flew into the window, well, the window had hawk- and crow stickers all over. Meant nothing to them.
@grinner
getting a cat is not an option. Love them to bits but won't support that.

Maybe something shiny like hanging a cd would work? They use that technique back home to keep deer away from the roads.

MajorBummer has a problem with deer jumping up on the balcony, too? Maybe it's time to move a little closer to the city.

Try hanging one or two of those €3 hollow plastic crows from the ceiling. You want them on a string so they can move. They work very well for a couple friends of mine.

woof.

@baddoggie

And what, pray tell, are these plastic cows? The second time these words appear on this thread.. *plastic + cows*. Bizarre.

How about crows?

They are just big plastic crows which should scare off the other birds.

@UrbanAngel


What do you mean? I have crows on my balcony as well. When the crows come the woodpeckers, tits and finches fly away. When the crow is gone they all return, many of them flying straight into the window again (clonk!).

I wrote "cRows", not cows (and I didn't edit the post to fix it.). You can find them in garden centres and hardware (DIY) stores like OBI and Praktiker. They're hollow, black plastic models of crows, about 35cm long. You use them to keep pigeons away but they're aso useful for dealing with other small birds. It's normally called a "Rabe" (raven). I'd give you a link but the hardware shops don't seem to have those set in their on-line catalogs.

woof.

Here you go, only €9.99.

[img]http://image01.otto.de/pool/formatb/832504.jpg[/img]

@Keydeck

Ooh, he's hot! I think I'm gonna have me a crowess or two falling for that handsome chap!

Hey, the point is, I like having the birds come around. I just don't want them to get injured and besides, if "the real thing" doesn't impress them I very much doubt some Ersatz-crow is gonna do the trick.

Major Bummer, you've gotten 3 good tips of how to fix things, but you didn't like any of them.

I think you will have to live while the birds die in that case.

Well then I guess you'll just have to cover your windows with bubble wrap or something similar...

@showem

Hey, thanks for all the tips man, it's not like I don't like them! I just don't think they'll work. I like the "windmill" tip the most, will seriously consider it. Will google to see where to buy.

They work. Fact. (crap, can't believe I used that)

Other people have tried them and had success with them and are therefore recommending them to you. You haven't and you say that you don't think they'll work. Odd.

And even if it doesn't do the trick for you, what have you lost apart from about 10 yoyos. Seems to me like it'd be a worthwhile investment/experiment.

perhaps a simple sign would work:


they are german birds, after all...

I think all the possibilities are a good start. You don't know they won't work until you try them at least. All inexpensive ways to try and save a bird's life.

Back home we used to use tin pie plates tied to the balcony...but that was mainly to keep the pigeons off (dirty birds they are). Was horrible and made loud tinny noises in the wind...but what you gonna do?!

Good luck to you...and the poor birds.

@keydeck

I have real crows on my balcony quite frequently. They leave, the other birds come out. That's why I'm sceptical that a plastic crow is gonna do the trick. The point is also that I like having the birds here. If I put up a plastic crow they might never come here again, well, except for the crows. That's why I am going to go for the "Windmill" option. Maybe windchimes as well!

Once again, thanks to you all! I wouldn't have come up with these things on my own!

We have a winner!

Well we had two birds fly into the flat about two weeks ago( we have the top flat with a large balconey so we are surrounded by birds). After about twenty min. we were able to get them out. The poor things were freaked out and one was wounded by flying ino the wall trying to evade us trying to push them out. That afternoon we bought door beads that reflected in light to hang over the balconey door. We also placed a screens on the windows as well as a reflective crystal to deter the birds.

I had this problem before. Took a while to figure out why it was happening. Then I noticed the mirror on the far wall facing the window reflected the light from outside so birds must have thought they were flying through an arch... Probably trying to show off in some mating ritual. Anyway, moved the mirror. Problem went away.

http://www.uptown-muenchen.de/english/campusgelaende.php

Well check the huge glass wall behind those trees in the picture -there are three of these in this complex.
There is a dozen of birds laying on the ground every day because of that stupid wall. I am wondering what the enviromentalists are doing here in Munich, there is no activity at all to prevent companies from realizing whatever designs in the expense of the environment.

@Clark.K

That's hard! You can bet your boots they aren't going to do anything about it either. BTW The windmills don't work either. *Clonk!* Have taken them off again. Have put up feeders on the outside of the balcony. Brakes their flight as they stop for eats. That way, if they still fly into the windows it would at least not be at full speed.