Beijing time on November 13, according to foreign media reports, the architects of glass buildings favor the world brought a better landscape, more natural light, and more sexy skyline, but also caused many birds death. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Administration estimates that about 750 million birds die each year as they fly into glass curtain walls, as it is difficult to distinguish them from the sky. The problem is so bad that skyscraper managers have had to hire workers to clean dead birds in buildings.

Global glass building "kill" 750 million birds a year, how can we avoid it?

▲ glass curtain wall construction

Gay Maxwell, a partner at New York's Enid Architects, is working to alleviate the carnage. As a bird lover, Maxwell first realized the deadly impact of architecture on birds 15 years ago, when his company designed the Rosemary and Space Center, the American Museum of Natural History, to be completed shortly thereafter. This huge glass cube allows visitors to glance at the Hayden Planetarium, but becomes a lethal invisible barrier to birds. Since then, Maxwell has been committed to protecting these feathered species.

Maxwell worked with an informal community of members including the American Birdwatching Society, the Audubon Society in New York City, the Audubon Society of New Jersey and the Bird Safety Glass Foundation. Together, they have made much progress in bird safety research, bird security building regulation, bird safety glass and bird safety awareness, prompting changes and having had a very big positive impact.

Recent achievements include promoting the American Birdwatching Association to set up two bird research facilities, one at the Powdermill Nature Reserve and the other at a converted container at the Bronx Zoo. The two test facilities are the only such facility in the United States led by Christoph Sheppard, bird-and-bird collision manager at the American Birdwatching Association, allowing researchers to investigate which glass designs and light conditions are driving birds Fly in or out For example, they already know that birds will not try to fly over vertical line-glass patterns that are less than four inches apart. In addition, this pattern of glass is often more effective at avoiding bird collisions than on dotted line patterns.

Global glass building "kill" 750 million birds a year, how can we avoid it?

▲ Test facility at Powdermill Nature Reserve

Using this knowledge, Maxwell, Shepard and their partners, in consultation with glass manufacturers such as Viracon, help produce ceramic frit patterns or UV-coated products that are visible to birds and can alert them to dangerous physical barriers exist.

In 2011, the team made its biggest policy achievement when they partnered with the US Green Building Council to launch the 55 LEED Green Building Pilot certification to integrate "bird collision deterrents" into buildings. The goal is to make the building visible to birds as much as possible through the introduction of new glass technologies, building exterior solutions such as screens and shutters, and reducing night-time lighting. Maxwell said it later became the most popular pilot certification for LEED. Other achievements include promoting urban legislation in San Francisco, Oakland and other Bay Area cities, which set the standard for building city-class bird safety buildings. In addition, New York, Minnesota and Toronto, Canada have also introduced mandatory and voluntary regulations.

Global glass building "kill" 750 million birds a year, how can we avoid it?

Bridge for Laboratory Sciences at Vaasa College

Much of the team's research is reflected in the Bridge for Laboratory Sciences building designed by Enfield Associates for Vaasa College. This bridge teaching and experimental building is a case study of bird safety buildings. Its windows feature Arnold Glass's bird-view Ornilux UV protection and are covered in ceramic frits of various colors.

Maxwell said the concept of bird security is changing the construction industry. This special bird-friendly design has spread throughout the United States, from the sintered glass at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens Visitor Center to the metal mesh at the Tracy Aviary Visitor Center in Salt Lake City. "People are now generally aware of the issue," said Maxwell. "You can see that architects think about this, and they did not even know it was a problem before."

In addition, the public is also gradually aware of the problem. Audubon Society in New York City has created a website called D-Bird where people can report building-related bird deaths.

At the same time, Maxwell and his companions are seeking financing to expand their research and initiatives. They may build several new laboratories on the east coast of the United States, fight for more bird safety legislation, and make bird friendly an inevitable factor for architects to consider.

"I'm surprised that there are still many people who are not aware of the seriousness of the problem," Maxwell said.