Conservancy Day: Bird Collision Corps: Working to Reduce Bird-Window Strikes

Access the recording of this Conservancy Day Program: YouTube channel

Birds and windows are not a good combination, and as a result, hundreds of millions of birds die each year in the US alone as a result of window collisions. Madison Audubon, UW-Madison, and the Dane County Wildlife Center have worked with volunteer citizen scientists since 2018 to study this problem at a local scale in Madison, focused primarily on the UW-Madison campus but with strong programs at other locations. One such location is Kromrey Middle School, where students from Clark Street Community School conduct surveys along the side of Kromrey that abuts Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor. You will learn about the Bird Collision Corps program, and the benefits of such work to birds, buildings, and building inhabitants.  This presentation is being offered in partnership with Madison Audubon Society.

Brenna Marsicek is the director of communications and outreach at Madison Audubon, and coordinates the Bird Collision Corps program as part of that work. She has lived in Madison for over 10 years, is a bird fan, plant nerd, and insect nut. She has degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in geography, international studies, and environmental studies, has been a Master Gardener in two states, is a wife to a sports-loving data scientist, and mom to two young children who spend most of their time barefooted and digging in the dirt.

Every Conservancy Day is:

• Free — thanks to your donations and membership as a Friend
• Open to the public
• For all ages unless a specific age group is given in the program description
• Diverse topics — More than 400 participants each year enjoy topics ranging from wildlife, science, resource management, natural and cultural history and current community issues

Mark your calendars for these inspiring and special events the third Thursday of each month, from January through November.

Photo: Bird specimens collected by volunteers in the Bird Collision Corps give a snapshot of the diversity and magnitude of the bird-window collision problem at a local scale. Credit: Madison Audubon Society.