Department of Biology

 "I took a brief walk out from the lab during an enzyme incubation and checked out the small wetland north of the music building on the IU campus," reported Steve Bell, professor of biology and expert birder, on a local birding Facebook page. "It was absolutely crawling with birds, Swainson's and Grey-cheeked Thrush and 10 warbler species including Wilson's and Mourning. Amazing to have this sort of habitat a 4-minute walk from my workplace."

According to ebird.org, an online database of bird observations managed by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 136 species of birds have been documented on the IU Bloomington campus since 2009.

Although the campus provides good habitat for birds, many dangers are also present—including bird-building collisions. Crashing into windows is a primary cause of bird mortality. It is estimated that window strikes kill as many as 1 billion birds per year in the U.S. and Canada. These deaths are nondiscriminatory; window strikes kill otherwise healthy birds. Nighttime lighting in buildings poses an additional threat. Artificial light at night can disorient birds, especially during migration. It can also attract them, leading to avian window strikes with often fatal results.

Sarah Wanamaker, research associate with IU's Environmental Resilience Institute and lab manager for Distinguished Professor of Biology Ellen Ketterson, is measuring the impact of campus buildings on bird populations.

Last fall and this spring, Wanamaker and her crew of volunteers monitored the area around seven IU Bloomington campus buildings. During fall 2020 they found 56 carcasses; in spring 2021, they found 32 carcasses.

Most bird populations are in decline. With the data she's collecting, Wanamaker intends to do something about it.

Wanamaker has recruited Bryce Himebaugh, IU clinical assistant professor of engineering, to customize sensors to detect and record window strikes and measure light output.

This spring Wanamaker was awarded a small grant from the Brabson Library and Educational Foundation. The additional funding is helping to expand her preliminary campus survey. Wanamaker’s bird strikes project has recently received funding from the Amos Butler Audubon Society as well.

In addition to collecting and analyzing data, the team is creating and publicizing a “Lights Out” campaign to alert the campus community to the danger nighttime lighting presents for birds.

Wanamaker recognizes the urgency to develop strategies to make the university and beyond safer for birds.

"I know that groundskeepers, maintenance workers, and predators remove many of the birds before we find them," said Wanamaker. "You have to consider all of the birds we're not finding. If you scale up our numbers to how many buildings are on campus, I'm astonished at the number of deaths that are most likely occurring. I'm surprised we still have birds left at this rate."

For more information or to submit data and photos about dead birds found near buildings on the IU Bloomington campus, email Wanamaker at sarawana@iu.edu. For those seeking ways to help birds in your area, visit the Global Bird Rescue website.