When it comes to glass, the National Aviary on Pittsburgh’s North Side has a unique problem. Not only do officials there not want any of their more than 500 birds to fly into its windows and glass ceilings, but they also don’t want wild birds outside hitting it either.
Window strikes are one of the top man-made causes of death for birds, according to the Audubon Society. As many as 1 billion birds die annually in the United States from strikes, according to a study by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Smithsonian.
Vitro Architectural Glass of Harmar, formerly part of PPG Industries, produced 20,000 square feet of bird-safe glass panes for the $3 million renovation of the Aviary’s Wetlands Habitat. Vitro donated the glass for the renovation and is a sponsor of the habitat.
The project includes a large fabricated tree in the public walkway, where birds perch while visitors sit on benches crafted in the tree’s roots. New bird species were added to the room, including the critically endangered blue-billed curassow.
But the most startling change to the room is the astounding amount of light — more natural light not filtered for ultraviolet rays.
“It’s just so much brighter,” said Molly Toth, Aviary spokeswoman. And safer for the birds. Vitro has both sides of the glass coated to diminish reflections to deter bird strikes inside and outside the venue.
Birds fly into windows because they can’t tell the difference between a reflection of the sky or vegetation from the real things.
To prevent strikes, researchers have learned that patterns such as lines, dots and other shapes, as well as coatings, applied on glass break up the reflection of what looks like continuous sky or greenery to a bird.
The special coating on the lower panels and roof is opaque and looks like frosted glass. But the massive walls of windows in the Wetlands Habitat look like milky thin blades of grass etched into the glass.
Previously, Vitro installed bird-friendly glass in the Aviary’s Tropical Rainforest in 2018 and its new Garden Room in 2020, which features thin, horizontal milky lines that almost look like open blinds offering an unfettered view of Allegheny Commons Park and Lake Elizabeth.
The surface textures are caused by the etching, which is applied to Vitro glass by Walker Glass, headquartered in Montreal, said Robert J. Struble, Vitro’s brand and communications manager.
“Demand for bird-friendly glass is expected to accelerate in the next five years,” he said.
Vitro is working on glass projects with bird-friendly glazing at Amazon HQ2 in Virginia, the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Discovery Center in Philadelphia and Pikes Peak Visitor Center in Colorado.
According to the American Bird Conservancy, mandatory and voluntary bird-friendly glass building codes exist in New York City; Madison, Wis.; San Francisco; Toronto; Portland, Ore.; and Washington, D.C.
Vitro will provide advanced glass on the FNB Tower in Pittsburgh. Vitro glass can be found at major attractions in the region, including PPG Paints Arena, PNC Park, Acrisure Stadium, the Convention Center and the South Side Works.
In addition to supporting the Aviary’s projects, Vitro also will help in the renovation of the Pittsburgh Glass Center, a gallery, studio and glassmaking school in the city’s Friendship neighborhood.
