Bird Deterrents that Reduce Window Strikes

One of the joys of creating a lovely garden is the time spent sitting on the nearby porch watching the many songbirds it attracts.  If a water fountain or birdbath is nearby, bird watchers will have the additional thrill of seeing the birds’ antics in the water. This water scene can easily be a double-edged sword.  Large windows looking out over the garden can reflect the images outside; fooling birds into thinking there is fun ahead.  Bird lovers are often saddened to find an injured or dead bird laying on the ground just beneath their window; the victim of an exuberant flier smashing directly and at full speed, into the immovable window.  Not every incident can be avoided, but there are some simple bird deterrents that can be put in place to reduce the number of events.

Simple First Steps

It is good to think about placement of the water feature in your garden or lawn. Locating a fountain or birdbath out of the line of reflection in the window, or very close to the window is a simple and cost effective bird deterrent for this situation.  Removing the image from the window view will send the birds flying instead to the real water source and not it’s reflection.  Water sources placed close to windows tend to decrease the window strike incidents since birds will more likely fly directly to the water source and not past it to the reflection.  If they do overshoot their target, their speed is normally slower as they approach the water. Birds hitting windows at a slower speed may be dazed and temporarily confused, but not seriously injured.

Two Steps Beyond

Covering your windows with opaque coatings will defeat the purpose of your lovely window/garden view.  Let’s face it, windows bring in light and allow us to view nature. There is no reason to live in the dark and miss out on the beauty outside.  One useful bird deterrent that can work to reduce bird strikes is to apply static cling decals to the windows. Window Alert decals applied every two to three square feet of exterior glass surface work to reflect ultraviolet light; warning the bird that this is not a pass through. What’s even better, the decals are virtually invisible when looking from the inside out. This solution is great because it protects the birds while allowing viewers to enjoy the indoor benefits of light-enhancing windows.

Lightweight bird netting may also be stretched tightly across a window.  The netting is invisible at a distance, and can serve to interfere with the reflective nature of the window. Also, if the bird still flies toward the window, the netting held taught a few inches from the solid glass panel, can help reduce the impact and potential serious injury.

A professional bird control retailer, or ornithologist can be contacted to help determine which window alert or bird netting is best for your situation.  One or more of these solutions put into practice will dramatically improve the safety of your homemade songbird sanctuary.

THE WILD, WILD WEST OF MANAGEMENT

Sometimes it is tough to define success in an organization.  Some may define it as exceptional profits and financial growth.  Some may feel that public perception or reputation for quality products is the key to success.  Still others, those who are in business for profit as well as for contributing to the greater good of our nation, may have a different definition.

So often the personal achievement of individuals, the everyday employee, is overlooked as a factor of company success. That hard-working, dedicated worker who clocks into an organization day after day, often forgoing school events with his/her children or personal activities with friends and family to assure the company vision is fulfilled. This is the employee who is constantly learning and trying to improve their performance on a regular basis.  This is also typically the employee who is secretly longing for recognition of their commitment and achievements.  The sad truth is that in far too many cases this is simply overlooked.

If only the major accomplishments of management and executives are celebrated, the excellent people who worked hard to create that great result can feel ignored, unappreciated and irrelevant.  The fact is that it is often the efforts of those employees that make the success possible.  It could be suggested that the most successful organizations all have one common trait – they inspire and recognize employees’ efforts and achievement.

Sound simple?  Au contraire!  Managers are far too often left in a quandary as to how to inspire, motivate and recognize employees.  The day-to-day hands-on work of the department can get in the way of collecting gems of information about an employee’s work.  Come performance review time, managers find themselves staring into a dark abyss trying to retrieve specific accomplishments, moments of excellent attitude, or those above and beyond incidents.

It takes intentionality to track employee achievements, and more effort yet to enact a system of regular recognition.  While a monetary bonus is always appreciated, a shining moment of sincere recognition by the team, the manager, or even the executives in an organization goes a long way toward motivating continued dedication.

Photo: goldelicious

PANNING FOR GOLD

At Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, California there is a Pan For Gold attraction located in the Ghost Town.  Visitors dig into the water, scoop up a mixture of sand, pebbles and dirt searching for that one nugget of gold.  Managers have a very similar job.  It’s impossible to know what each employee is doing every day, so a good manager uses many of these mining techniques on a regular basis:

• Speak with fellow employees with whom the employee has interacted
• Speak to any outside vendors, suppliers, or clients with whom the employee has interfaced
• Discuss the employee’s contribution to a specific project with the project lead
• Seek out opinions as to the employee’s reputation among other department personnel
• Check the employee’s attendance habits, or their safety record
• Analyze personal conversations that took place with the employee
• Check employee’s annual goals and the progress he/she is making toward them

These efforts are just like panning for gold.  One small nugget may be revealed that deserves to be shined up, developed, or recognized.  If a manager sees a nugget that isn’t shining yet, but would be brilliant given the right feedback and guidance – take the opportunity to recognize the effort and mentor the employee to develop his/her skills for even better results. This kind of recognition can be very motivating to the right employee.

TALES OF THE WILD WEST

Performance reviews can be a great place to recognize an employee’s achievements. Managers who have not been actively panning for gold during the year can often find this annual responsibility pure drudgery.  They find themselves writing superficial reviews that tend to either overlook the positive, or over-emphasize the negative.  Managers who have been collecting little gems of performance highlights throughout the year are more likely to prepare and deliver a more balanced & useful performance review.

Offering quick and timely kudos to an employee does a lot to build up confidence and motivate continued quality performance. Managers who conduct quarterly performance checks find themselves much better prepared for those annual reviews.  This can be an effective way to see if goals need to be adjusted, training needs to be done, or acknowledgement of effort is appropriate.

But recognizing achievement behind closed doors is not the only way to build up a good employee's confidence.  Managers who have panned for gold and found a valuable nugget want to do what every old west gold miner wanted to do – shout it out to others!

Find simple, creative and fun ways to tell others about an employee’s achievement.

• Write a short blurb in the company newsletter recognizing the individual
• Plan a surprise lunch for the department and announce the employee’s great effort
• Create a public board to post daily or weekly recognition (AND USE IT!).
• Write a commendation to the company CEO or President describing the efforts of the employee (copy to employee & HR file.)
• Take time in normal conversation with the employee and other managers to commend the employee’s work.
• Send out an email to the employee congratulating them for their work (copy your boss and the department members.)
• Challenge the employee with the leadership role on a new project (if appropriate), letting the team know it is because of their great work on the previous project.

Companies who invest in their people are much more likely to be defined as “successful” by employees.  Panning for gold can be a very uplifting and satisfying adventure for any manager.  It can find wonderful nuggets of achievement to crow about, and uncover areas where development and training are still needed.  So hitch up you thigh high boots and get digging!

Travel review for Trip Advisor

“Child's birthday garden party blossomed at Red Butte.”

Reviewed August 5, 2011 NEW

It was my granddaughter's sixth birthday. We have always tried to create a birthday party around her current favorite activity. At four it was a jungle theme, turning our entire downstairs into a rain forest. At five it was princesses and knights - dress up at the local museum. This year we wanted to encourage her love of gardening. 

The perfect place was Red Butte Gardens children's Sprout House in Salt Lake City, Utah. For about $160 they provided the lovely garden venue, invitations, tableware, games, decorations and a party master. We provided twelve fun-loving kids, cupcakes and juice. 

In Utah you never know what the weather is going to be like on any given future date. When we planned the party it was 72 degrees and sunny. On the day of the party, it snowed!!! We were panicking a bit, but the staff at Red Butte took it all in stride. Without missing a beat they conducted a garden animals scavenger hunt; the kids played in the lovely garden mazes, colored pots and planted herbs (the take-away for each child).  Our party planner even read the group a garden themed story book. 

The whole event was a beautiful, fun, relaxing (despite the frigid temps), and memorable children's birthday party at a reasonable price. We had parents raving about the unique event for weeks afterwards. It was definitely value received.

If you are interested in a children's party at Red Butte Garden's, give Abbie Keyes a call at (801) 581-8454, or email her at  ABBIE.KEYES@REDBUTTE.UTAH.EDU 

Pigeons: A love/hate relationship

The common feral pigeon also goes by the name “street pigeon,” or “city pigeon.” More often then not, they are just called pest birds. Feral pigeons were derived from the world’s oldest domesticated bird, the Rock Pigeon. After rerunning to the wild, these pigeons adapted quickly to city life and are now in abundant supply in towns all across the globe.

Photo: Bid-B-Gone

Though the pigeon population in the United States has certainly made themselves at home in residential and commercial locales across the United States, they are not originally from North America.  They were brought to the New World by European settlers  way back in the early 1600’s. Their large families seem to infest neighborhood eateries or charming old town memorials, making bird control a common topic of many a city hall meeting.

To know them is to love them?

Though they have earned a reputation for being the most annoying  birds on restaurant row, getting to know the pigeon is the first step to designing an effective bird deterrent method without harming them. 

These common pigeons normally live about 3-4 years and breed all year round. They are a loyal bunch, typically monogamous to their one and only true love. A committed pigeon pair nesting together could have 3-4 broods each year. The chicks have a short 18-day incubation period, leaving their nest as soon as ten days after hatching. Even though nature sends these young birds off on their own very early, they are not migratory birds. They will stay very close to home for the remainder of their life.  Pigeons prepare their nests in the latter part of the cold season, and breed in the early spring. Mom and dad both share the feeding responsibility for their young ones, but dad is the one who protects and defends the nest from predators.

The daily habits of a feral pigeon are easy to follow.  They wake up in the morning and eat. They typically hang out in the neighborhood in the afternoon, roosting and sleeping in the evening. They are unlikely to fly in the night unless they are disturbed or threatened in some way. The predictable routine of the pigeons does help when deciding how to keep birds away from a location.

Love hurts!

Feeding the pigeons has been a well-loved activity for years. But this becomes a real problem when the pigeon population has become too prolific.  This is easily identifiable by their aggressive feeding habits and the mess they leave behind. Onlookers often feed the birds, not realizing that they are adding to a bigger problem.  As long as there is food, the pigeon posses will stay around. To help control the ever-increasing problem, many cities have issued ordinances that forbid the feeding of these pest birds.

Pigeons leave their white droppings just about anywhere they go. This is particularly prevalent around their roosting sites. The uric acid in their droppings is corrosive to many surfaces.  Excessive pigeon droppings cause damage to tables, canvas awnings and signs. In fact, some researchers theorize that it was a pile up of acidic pigeon droppings that weakened the steel struts on the forty-year-old I-35W Mississippi River Bridge that collapsed in 2007.  The eight-lane bridge was a main crossing in Minnesota, and the failure occurred in the middle of rush hour traffic, killing 13 travelers and injuring more than 140 others. 

Pigeon Patrols and Damage Control

Once pigeons claim a territory, it is very difficult to keep the birds away. They raised their families there.  They have friends in the neighborhood. They are not going to pack up and leave without a fight.  They have amazing tracking senses, so even if a pigeon trap is used to capture and relocate the birds, it is highly likely they will return in due time. If the pigeon population is too excessive, it may be necessary to capture all or some of the pest birds. However, the key to effective bird control is selecting the right method for the circumstances combined with patrolling and maintaining the area. 

Pre-planning is essential. Effective pigeon deterrents like bird netting, bird spikes, sound deterrents, sticky gel, or bird wires are just a few of the methods that could be put in place immediately after removal.  By implementing these proven bird deterrents immediately, the returning bird population can become more manageable.