A few birds we see have red somewhere on their body…some on the breast, some on the eyes, some on their chest…and some all over like the Cardinals! 

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (female or maybe young male)

This week, we have found two of these birds dead after a window strike. Ann Latta from the Undergraduate Financial Office reported a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, while the Fall carcass survey has picked up at least 4 Red-eyed Vireos in a week. They’re coming through…and staying here once they find their end against a window. In other studies, we have found Red-eyed Vireos to be the most vulnerable species to window collisions, with up to 20 found dead during migration season (Agudelo et al. 2010). As for the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, it is the first one we find dead, and also the only one I’ve ever seen on campus…how unfortunate.

Red-eyed Vireo (but you can’t see his red eyes anymore…)

Agudelo, L., J. Moreno, & N. Ocampo-Peñuela. 2010. Colisiones de aves contra ventanales en un campus universitario de Bogotá, Colombia. Ornitología Colombiana 10: 3-10.