> 98-02-18, Michael Dossett (mpdossett at juno.com) forwards:
>
> << >An estimated 5000-10,000 birds, mostly Lapland Longspurs, were killed on
> >the night of January 22nd, 1998 in the vicinity of a 420 foot tall guyed
> >communications tower in western Kansas.... >>
>
> Richard Rowlett added:
> Along the West Coast, such events are relatively minor are they not? I would
> think so since migrations of passerines and other small birds is less
> concentrated on a specific corridor and more diffuse. Does anyone know much
> about 'tower kill' mortalities in Western and Eastern Washington, or even
> elsewhere? Do any or many birds crash into the tall buildings or the Space
> Needle in Seattle? It seems I've seen or heard mention of such but the memory
> is so vague and may not even be correct.
>
This is the first I've heard of "tower kills," but I have run into
another similar problem. Around Arcata, CA, there are many
powerlines the run east-west to take electricity to outlying homes.
Many of these also cross waterways. The problem occured at night
when shorebirds would move north from the bay to the grassy fields.
They couldn't see the miles of powerline, and it wasn't uncommon to
find wingless birds below these lines the next morning. The pattern
would repeat when the birds returned to the bay.

Some of these birds actually survived this freak surgery and were
taken to rehab centers. Of course, a wingless shorebird won't last
long in the wild, so they often ended up in zoos.
jw
Jane Westervelt
Moscow, ID