In July 2024, Baldwin hired Feather Friendly to install two test panels of their product on the southeast corner of the library’s Grams Discovery Room windows. Feather Friendly® Bird Collision Deterrent Technologies uses cast vinyl markers with a non-removable adhesive to make glass visible to birds. The products have been tested and approved by American Bird Conservancy, Dr. Daniel Klem Jr., and supported by countless other organizations (link to read the research). While every project is unique, independent studies have shown a 95%+ reduction in bird-glass collisions with the use of this product.

We are testing two panels of Feather Friendly® Bird Collision Deterrent for durability over the next year. This will enable us to see how the product holds up during a full year of weather conditions and to see how our window cleaning company’s products interact with the film. If the library board is happy with the product after one year, it will consider installing this deterrent on all of the glass windows surrounding the youth room and the new front entrance. The approximate project cost is $31,000.

According to the National Audubon Society, “research indicates that up to 1 billion birds may be killed per year in the U.S. alone due to window collisions. Birds hit buildings at all hours during the day and night. At night migrating birds can be distracted by bright lights in our cities. During the day the problem is reflection or other confusing aspects of glass.” Birds are essential to our ecosystem because:

• Birds eat insect pests that would otherwise decimate agricultural crops, gardens, and other vegetation. Birds eat 400–500 tons of insects per year.
• Birds like crows and vultures scavenge carcasses, reducing the spread of diseases such as rabies and distemper.
• Birds disperse seeds, spreading plants into new areas.
• Birds such as hummingbirds help pollinate plants.
• Birds like hawks and owls help keep the mouse and rat population in check.
• Birds eat millions of mosquitoes and other biting insects each year.

What do you think about the bird deterrent?

Should we install this on all of the windows in the Youth Room and the new atrium? Please help us out by taking our brief survey.