We had the same problem with cardinals. The only thing we could think of was the reflection so we lowered our wooden shades and that seemed to stop them. Are there curtains on that window she could pull so the reflection isn't there?

FWIW this was the first time we had anything like that happen.

Birds flying into windows is not an uncommon occurance around here. They eat the fermenting berries and get drunk is what the Ag man told us. The glass is reflecting something but it appears as open space to the birds and they try to fly through. To prevent them from flying into the window that is reflecting open space, it is wise to tape or staple a few flapping strips of cloth or other such noticeable items on the outside. It worked for us. I just used some very pretty wind spinners until the birdies were done with the berries and moved on.

CT

We have had this problem for many years with cardinals. Nothing deters them. They just keep banging the windows and I just keep washing windows and decks. We have lots and lots of windows, so it isn't practical to install shades or hang things. They follow us from room to room, and even sit on the ledge to look in. This year, for the first time ever, we had a robin who was banging into the window with the cardinals!

Every year I have cardinals flying into my living room windows. I hear them hit sometimes. Doesn't matter if the drapes are open or closed, they still do it. Dumb birds. . .

The reflection that the robin is seeing is an "intruder" in his/her territory. Getting rid of the reflection is the only way to stop it. Try putting something right against the glass...cardboard works. Leave it there for a few days till the robin moves on. We have to cover up a window in the basement window well for the whole bird breeding season.

That happened to us when we lived in the country. One poor cardinal broke his neck and died. I bought some decals to put on the windows and it seemed to work.

Linda

I'm sure that gazania is correct, the Robin thinks he is defending his territory. I'll bet that the Robin is hitting the window at about the same time every day...the time that the sun is just right and the reflection is clearest. I'll also bet that the Robin is part of a breeding pair or, wants to be part of a breeding pair and that there may well be a nest near by. Covering the outside of the window will stop the reflection and the behavior. As soon as the breeding season is over, the Robin will move on.

sooey

I had a new door installed off of my family room and OMG has it been horrible. I can't tell you what the door looks like outside - just gross. Now all of a sudden they are running into all of the windows too. I thought it was because of the glare, but as another poster said, it's from the berry-eating. They must be having some party because they are getting to everyone around here. I'm thinking about getting another door because I can't even use it now.

I was in the bird store yesterday and a gentleman came in complaining of the same issue..The store keeper offered a tape thingie that you could hang strands of it to "help" break up the view/reflection.
I'm betting doing that with anything, a hanging plant, a wind sock, a chime...would do the same.

Open the window.

Put up a sign, "No crapping allowed in here".

Go to a naturalists'/bird watchers' meeting to try to get a translation of the sign into robin talk.

If they tell you that birds can't read ...

... try to get them to record that message on a tape recorder.

HTH.

ole joyfoul

When birds consisently fly into a window, likely they are seeing a reflection that 'fools' them. For example, if a bird launches from a feeder and sees a blue sky reflected in the window, and maybe a tree top, he goes for it, and then thud!

I have 4 upstairs windows facing the same direction and one of those have been hit twice by mourning doves (not the smartest bird to begin with). Two years ago, while on a ladder doing maintence on the house, I spotted the problem. When I viewed this window at bird's eye level (nad from the outside), it appeared to be open space. In the room and opposite the window was a dresser with a large mirror. The mirror was tilted at the precise angle to reflect the open sky, and when viewed from outside, the window seemed to be a hole in the wall open to the sky. One fix would have been to change the mirror angle, but this is not effective since two of us use the same mirror and it gets adjusted to the individaul user's needs. The solution was to prevent the mirror from being seen from the outside.

The same effect happens if the window glass itself becomes a reflector.

About bird crap: Birds often take a crap when they launch into flight, and especially if startled. This can be observed using binoculars. I had a roommate in college who related his first hand experience with this phenomonem. In his town, blackbirds become a big nusance in the fall when they form huge flocks and inundate the local trees in town in the evening. One fine evening, the block fathers decided they had enough, and their other efforts at discourgement had failed, so several of them stood in a ring around a tree loaded with birds and they, on cue, fired shotguns into the tree. My friend, wishing to see a flock of hundreds of birds take flight, stood under the tree facing up. Yep - very bird took a crap and he headed for the shower.

Used to happen where I worked. They hung a cardboard cut out of an owl, which birds are afraid of and it stopped the birds from flying into the window.