This is a lovely time of year when the birds are back, and the garden is filled with their singing and springtime antics.

It’s also a time when they go on suicide missions against windows in your home. There’s nothing like sitting at the table enjoying breakfast while a robin flies straight into the window. That will wake you up better than coffee.

Why Birds Fly Into Windows

There are a couple of reasons why they do this. Occasionally birds mess up, and don’t realize the beautiful scene of trees and blue sky is actually glass. This might happen more often if the birds are flushed are startled in some way. They’re looking for an immediate escape route and don’t process what they see as effectively.

The other cause is a territorial issue. During nesting times, the males of many species, including robins and cardinals (a couple of the biggest offenders) stake out their turf, and they’re going to drive off any intruders. This includes that fine looking male staring back at him.

To say they’re not thinking straight is an understatement. They will fly repeatedly into the window attacking the reflection the entire time. Attacks like these aren’t as harmful as the straightaway bombardments that can break their little necks. It’s so sad to have one hit the window, only to find it dead on the ground below. (As a matter of fact, it’s estimated that over 100 thousand birds die each year from slamming themselves into the windows of skyscrapers in cities.)

Keeping Them Away from Windows

But what can you do about it? The goal is to make the window less reflective so it doesn’t look like a separate landscape that needs defending, or can confuse birds that it’s a safe getaway path.

I used to use the bird silhouettes that stick to the window. It worked fairly well on letting them know that it was definitely a window and not open air. If you’re having more problems with birds hitting the glass out of confusion rather than aggression, you also might want to move the bird feeder away from the house so it’s not in the direct flight path.

For the aggression issue, you might have to resort to more extreme measures. This doesn’t mean you have to board your windows as if you were preparing for a hurricane, but you do have to cover the windows with something to minimize reflection.

The best option is to tack up a thin mesh or screen over the outside of the window to completely eliminate the reflection. You can also string garden twine criss-crossing the window and tie on reflective ribbon. Sometimes even pulling the blinds or making sure the screens are installed is enough to stop the behavior.

Through All Alternatives

For the most part, something along these lines will be enough to discourage birds from attacking the glass, but there are some that just have it in their minds that they have to eliminate all rivals. They’ll even attack the mirrors or windows on your car.

These birds have issues. You might want to cover the mirrors with a bag, and set up the sunscreens in your car all the way around. In a pinch, taping newspaper to the window will also help a lot. Your neighbors might vote for you in the “you might be a redneck” contest, but at least you won’t have the birds counting coup on your windows!

(The beautiful cardinal picture is copyright Stevebyland from istock.)