Staggering 1,000 birds die in ‘massive carnage’ after crashing into Chicago four-story building while migrating north – the highest number in a single day on record
- At least 960 birds crashed into lit windows at McCormick Place Lakeside Center
- Rains on Thursday morning may have led to the worst day of bird monitoring
- The regions along the birds’ migration route experiencing significant storms with heavy rains recently
Nearly 1,000 birds died in ‘massive carnage’ after smashing into a building Thursday in Chicago while migrating to Peru, marking the highest number on record.
At least 960 birds died when they crashed into lit windows at McCormick Place Lakeside Center, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The rain on Thursday morning and recent weather patterns may have contributed to the worst day in 40 years of bird monitoring, said ornithologist David Willard.
Had they stayed their course, the birds were expected to reach the Andes Mountains of Peru, according to the retired manager of the bird division collections at the Field Museum.
‘You’re looking at a rose-breasted grosbeak that, if it hadn’t hit a Chicago window, would have made it to the Andes of Peru,’ Willard said.
He added: ‘It was just discouraging as can be.’
Nearly 1,000 birds died in ‘massive carnage’ as they crashed into a building Thursday in Chicago while migrating to Peru
Bird watchers said more than 100,000 birds embarked their journey in under four hours Thursday
The lit windows in Lakeside Center contributed to the massive deaths of birds
There was a sense of urgency prompting numerous birds to migrate. A period with few winds out of the north left a lot of them with no choices but to embark their journey.
‘Sometimes, it’s like “now or never”, and they go,’ Willard said.
Bird watchers said more than 100,000 birds embarked their journey in under four hours Thursday.
It was a dangerous time for flying, unfortunately, as the regions along the birds’ migration route experiencing significant storms with heavy rains recently.
Rains early in the morning could also drive the creatures lower to the ground and closer to danger.
The lit windows in Lakeside Center were neither favorable – roughly a billion birds die crashing into windows in the country every year.
The dead birds will be used in studies or as scientific specimens at the Field Museum of Natural History
The City Council of Chicago passed a bill in 2020 requiring bird safety measures or bird-friendly windows in new buildings, but it has not been implemented yet.
Most birds died Thursday were palm warblers and yellow-rumped warblers.
Those colorful songbirds will be used in studies or as scientific specimens at the Field Museum of Natural History.
Thursday also made a record for Chicago Bird Collision Monitors, said Director Annette Prince.
The group found about 450 dead birds and rescued 300 injured birds.
‘We’re talking about irreplaceable birds that are a critical part of a healthy environment,’ Prince said.
‘They’re already declining significantly and for them to die needlessly at the feet of all these buildings as they did today — it’s a tragedy.’
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