Birds migrating through Chicagoland face new challenges this spring

An avian flu outbreak is killing millions of birds nationwide. And here in Chicago, birds face an additional threat: skyscrapers.

By Christian Elliott
Dead birds
Migrating birds can become disoriented by brightly lit skyscrapers and fly into the glass windows. Chicago Bird Collision Monitors collected over 200 dead birds representing 30 different species downtown just this weekend. Chicago is the deadliest American city for migrating birds. Courtesy of Annette Prince, Chicago Bird Collision Monitors
Dead birds
Migrating birds can become disoriented by brightly lit skyscrapers and fly into the glass windows. Chicago Bird Collision Monitors collected over 200 dead birds representing 30 different species downtown just this weekend. Chicago is the deadliest American city for migrating birds. Courtesy of Annette Prince, Chicago Bird Collision Monitors

Birds migrating through Chicagoland face new challenges this spring

An avian flu outbreak is killing millions of birds nationwide. And here in Chicago, birds face an additional threat: skyscrapers.

By Christian Elliott
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It’s the height of spring migration season, and Chicago lies directly in the migratory path of over 250 species of wild birds. So how are birds faring, given the city’s architecture and the worsening avian flu outbreak?

Reset checks in with a wildlife biologist and a local advocate group.

GUESTS: Chris Anchor, wildlife biologist at the Forest Preserves of Cook County

Annette Prince, director of the Chicago Bird Collision Monitors