Window area and development drive spatial variation in bird-window collisions in an urban landscape

PLoS One. 2013;8(1):e53371. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0053371. Epub 2013 Jan 9.

Abstract

Collisions with windows are an important human-related threat to birds in urban landscapes. However, the proximate drivers of collisions are not well understood, and no study has examined spatial variation in mortality in an urban setting. We hypothesized that the number of fatalities at buildings varies with window area and habitat features that influence avian community structure. In 2010 we documented bird-window collisions (BWCs) and characterized avian community structure at 20 buildings in an urban landscape in northwestern Illinois, USA. For each building and season, we conducted 21 daily surveys for carcasses and nine point count surveys to estimate relative abundance, richness, and diversity. Our sampling design was informed by experimentally estimated carcass persistence times and detection probabilities. We used linear and generalized linear mixed models to evaluate how habitat features influenced community structure and how mortality was affected by window area and factors that correlated with community structure. The most-supported model was consistent for all community indices and included effects of season, development, and distance to vegetated lots. BWCs were related positively to window area and negatively to development. We documented mortalities for 16/72 (22%) species (34 total carcasses) recorded at buildings, and BWCs were greater for juveniles than adults. Based on the most-supported model of BWCs, the median number of annual predicted fatalities at study buildings was 3 (range = 0-52). These results suggest that patchily distributed environmental resources and levels of window area in buildings create spatial variation in BWCs within and among urban areas. Current mortality estimates place little emphasis on spatial variation, which precludes a fundamental understanding of the issue. To focus conservation efforts, we illustrate how knowledge of the structural and environmental factors that influence bird-window collisions can be used to predict fatalities in the broader landscape.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biodiversity
  • Birds / growth & development*
  • Cities*
  • Facility Design and Construction*
  • Humans
  • Illinois
  • Models, Biological
  • Population Dynamics
  • Species Specificity

Grants and funding

The authors received $2,400 from the Quad City Audubon Society (www.quadcityaudubon.org/) for travel expenses for carcass surveys. There is no grant number. The lead author (SBH) was awarded $1,000 Presidential Scholarship from Augustana College (www.augustana.edu). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.