Final Report – 10 November 2024
Assiniboine Park Conservancy is a non-profit entity that manages the Assiniboine Park and the Assiniboine Park Zoo for the benefit of Manitobans and the wildlife that live in these community assets. Within this organization, the Conservation and Research Department (CRD) sets priorities within a conservation strategy focused on science-based conservation programs that protect wild species. The department also has a strong track record of successfully obtaining external funding to maximize conservation impact and delivering on those grant-funded projects. We are very grateful to the Manitoba Bluebird Fund Salzmann Songbird Fund for the grant that has helped us to mitigate a large set of windows at the Assiniboine Park Zoo.
Since 2013, the Conservation and Research team has been taking action to reduce the occurrence of bird collisions with windows on new and existing buildings across Assiniboine Park and Zoo and has encouraged our community to join us in these efforts by mitigating the windows of their homes. This has also included significant monitoring efforts, and the team has documented bird-window collisions by systematically surveying buildings through the spring and fall migration period (April-November) and providing veterinary care with assistance from veterinary staff at the Assiniboine Park Zoo for all injured birds found along designated routes. We have installed mitigation on 70 windows of various buildings and structures across the Park and Zoo. The data collected throughout the 10+ years of collision surveying has informed decisions for further mitigation efforts, such as prioritizing windows identified as high-risk for mitigation as funding becomes available (e.g., Qualico Family Center patio, Gibbon habitat). Additionally, we have emphasized the importance of having mitigation built into several new buildings and exhibits (e.g., Wolf habitat, the Leaf). With these data-driven mitigation efforts, we have seen significant reductions in collision rates on mitigated high-risk windows.
Most recently, the North Side of the Main Zoo entrance was identified as a collision hotspot. With funds provided in part by the Manitoba Bluebird Fund Salzmann Songbird Grant, we were able to mitigate these windows in June of 2024 (Figure 1). The area mitigated totalled over 350 m2 (3,782 ft2) of glass and included dots at the recommended 2” spacing, the Zoo motto of “Connect. Inspire. Conserve” (Figure 2), and two smaller panels for visitors to learn about bird-window collision mitigation (Figure 3). The final project cost totalled $25,050.11 (plus $3006.02 GST and PST) for materials and installation. We are very appreciative of the Manitoba Bluebird Fund Salzmann Songbird Grant for the $5000.00 contribution.
This mitigation on the North Side of the Main Zoo entrance has already had a direct impact. The average fall migration collisions for the past three years was 7.3 collisions (range: 7-8) and in the post-mitigation fall migration, we only recorded three collisions not all of which were fatal. We anticipate and look forward to a similar reduction in collisions during the upcoming spring migration and on an ongoing basis.
Communications efforts to reduce bird collision in 2024 included social media and a blog post (https://www.assiniboinepark.ca/stories/220/creating-a-bird-friendly-world-inside-assiniboine-park-s-conservation-efforts).
Figure 1. A contractor installs bird collision prevention dots on the windows at the Zoo's main entrance.
Figure 2. Final mitigation installation at the North Side of the Main Zoo entrance with the Zoo motto “Connect.Inspire.Conserve”.
Figure 3. Two eye-level interpretive panels were installed on either side of the building to inform visitors of the purpose of the dots and the actions they could take.