[TowerTalk] Commercial Comms Towers and Bird Strikes

[Scott W3TX]

I think Mark makes an excellent point about the autospy (we call it necropsy
in the animal world) question.  That is, just because a dead bird is found
under a tower does not mean the tower killed the bird.

As a reader of an international list server dedicated to infectious disease
it is often that there are reports of large-scale avian die-offs near lakes.
Does that mean we should drain the lakes to save the birds? No. Some of
these die-offs are tracked back to poisoning, others to infectiious disease.

If anyone becomes aware of an incident of dead birds under a tower I would
be glad to coordinate a study by a veterinary avian pathologist.

I have never found a dead bird under my tower.

But hundereds of migrating birds, every year, use my tower as a rest stop.
Since 2000 there has been a group (family?) of turkey vultures that visit my
tower twice a year for a week each time. They did break an element once
(where do I send that bill?).   Also, large flocks of purple martins enjoy
hunting bugs from my stacked yagis.  And you wouldn't believe how well
plants grow under the tower thanks to the birds' guano.

73, Scott Johns VMD W3TX
www.superbertha.com