[TowerTalk] Bird strikes

[Tom Rauch]

Hi Roger,

>  A big factor is whether the tower is on a migration
> route. 

My towers are on migration routes for birds that fly from the north 
to Florida.

They also are between two small lakes or large ponds, there is 
heavy bird traffic at all hours here as different species feed and hunt.

In find dozens of birds a year lying paws-up in front of my picture 
windows, and virtually never find one around my towers...and that is 
with the most God-awful mess of wires criss-crossing the sky 
you'd ever see. I think they would save far more more birds by 
banning picture windows than they would by banning towers or 
tower lights.   

>Apparently, many species fly at night and are
> attracted by the lights.

The only time I've ever seen birds attracted to lights is when the 
light has attracted bugs, and the birds feed on bugs. What species 
of bird is attracted to lights?

That includes non-birds also that eat bugs. My yard-lights often 
have birds and bats swooping by, but they are eating. Only the 
really stupid ones hit the lights. The exceptionally dumb ones, or 
the ones who are suicidal, fly into the my picture windows.

Surely there is someone on the group that is a bird expert, and 
would know what species of bird is moth-like in behavior.
73, Tom W8JI
w8ji@contesting.com

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