Knowledgebase
Female Cardinal attacking window #308402
Asked March 21, 2016, 4:19 PM EDT
Howard County Maryland
Expert Response
What you describe is a fairly common behavior for territorial bird species like, robins, sparrows and cardinals that nest close to houses. It generally occurs in spring. Both males and females do this as they attempt to thwart possible competitors or birds they view as a threat to their young. They see their reflection in your window and assume it is a bird they need drive away which leads them to fly into the glass. You can prevent this temporarily by covering the outside of the window with bird netting or fabric so their reflection is no longer visible to them. Or hang shiny objects like cd discs or Mylar tape in front of the window. There are also semi-transparent stickers sold to prevent birds from flying into windows. This behavior is exhausting for the bird but is usually not lethal.
dr
