Bird Brigade student artist at work. Photo: Fresh Artists
Project Spotlights
Yellow Warbler. Photo: George Armistead
Art supplies package. Photo: Fresh Artist
Sister Cities Café
Bird Safe Philly and the Center City District unveiled the installation of bird-friendly window treatments on the extensive glass walls at the Café, designed to mitigate bird deaths and injuries caused by bird collisions on Monday, October 2, 2023 at the Sister Cities Café on Logan Circle. This Sister Cities Café project was conceived as a means to demonstrate what can be done — an important milestone for Bird Safe Philly to promote positive actions that property owners can adapt to their own buildings to make them bird safe. Approximately 1,000 sq ft of glass was retrofitted with Feather Friendly Bird Collision Deterrent Markers. Read more here in this brochure.
Briar Bush Nature Center
Bird Safe Philly and Briar Bush Nature Center in Abington partnered to address bird collisions at the center. Approximately 500 square feet of glass was retrofitted on several buildings, including the bird observatory with Feather Friendly Bird Collision Deterrent Markers. Installation occurred April 2023 for spring migration and as part of 2023 EarthFest.
Springside Chestnut Hill Academy
The 3rd grade science classes of Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, Lower School, partnered with Bird Safe Philly to apply Feather Friendly Bird Collision Deterrent Markers and their own custom-made bird decals to the cafeteria windows. These windows reflect the surrounding trees of the Wissahickon, and the school has observed birds collided with these windows. We hope to continue this partnership with SCH and protect birds from colliding with windows at other locations on the school’s campus.
Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust
Bird Safe Philly and Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust partnered to address bird collisions on the trust property including the BLBB Charitable Field Station, Visitors Center, and other buildings. Approximately 175 sq ft of glass was retrofitted with Feather Friendly Bird Collision Deterrent Markers. Installation occurred October 2023 and was completed by 17 volunteers!
A collaborative effort with Fresh Artists is helping to create a deeper appreciation for birds among students and their families in the Philadelphia region, while bringing broader awareness to the issue of bird collisions. Student artists from Philly, Camden and Norristown schools created Bird Portraits, which were featured in the Fresh Artist "Bird Brigade" Exhibition at the 2021 Philadelphia Flower Show, along with an informative panel about bird collisions and solutions. Watch this video to learn more.
In collaboration with Bird Safe Philly, PECO is helping to keep our night sky safe for migrating birds. As a participant in Lights Out Philly, PECO is ensuring their buildings interior lights, activated by light sensors, are dark when not in use. In addition, PECO's iconic Crown Lights feature movement and are dimmer during this season, to reduce attractiveness to birds at night. This information was featured in PECO's August 2021 edition of Energy@Home.