HOME / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

Where is NYC's 'egregious bird killing building'? Structure deemed disaster area for migratory birds

'For how small it is and how new it is, it kills a disproportionate amount of birds from our perspective,' said Catherine Quayle of Wild Bird Fund

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: An 11-story condominium in the Harlem neighborhood called Circa Central Park has now been classified as a disaster area for migratory birds. Environmentalists assert that the gleaming glass exterior of Circa Central Park has become a nightmare for birds flying across the Big Apple, leading them to collide with the building and end up dead on the sidewalk.

The building's design has led to a "disproportionate" amount of the local birds being discovered dead, which has alarmed locals and environmental organizations, according to the NY Post. "The location and design of Circa make it particularly dangerous to birds," said Dr Dustin Partridge, the Director of Conservation and Science at the New York City Audubon Society to the outlet. Volunteers from the nonprofit organization have the sad responsibility of removing the dead warblers off the front of the opulent building every morning. Until bird-friendly glass is installed, campaigners predict more warblers will perish.

READ MORE

GOING VIRAL: Internet star Emmanuel the emu fights for its life after lethal avian flu sweeps through farm

‘They chase us, try to pop tires, it's wild': Woburn residents terrorized by 'aggressive' turkeys

"It's definitely an egregious bird killing building. For how small it is and how new it is, it kills a disproportionate amount of birds from our perspective," said Catherine Quayle of the nonprofit Wild Bird Fund to the outlet.

A breathtaking variety of birds can be seen in New York City, including raptors that perch atop tall skyscrapers and migrating warblers that fly through the city's parks in the spring and fall. However, in addition to being a concrete jungle, a vast, glass-paneled building complex can be a maze of dangers for birds.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) said that birds frequently mistake reflections for the surrounding environment and pure air because they lack the ability to distinguish between glass and other portions of the sky. This causes an estimated one billion birds to crash into buildings each year, killing them. Approximately 230,000 birds in New York City alone are killed annually by this manner, according to NYC Audubon.

These situations are preventable and the report by NYC Audubon stated that installing a specific glass that is bird-friendly could aid in preventing these crashes, but doing so would necessitate an entire building renovation. The good news is that similar endeavors in the past have proven successful. The enormous convention center Javits Center in New York City recently rebuilt its distinctive glass façade with bird-friendly glass, cutting down on avian collisions by 90%.