Whether it’s ghosts for Halloween or lights for Christmas, the holidays are a time when people decorate their houses with themed ornaments to instill joy in others.
Unfortunately, sometimes there are hidden victims of these decorations you might not have thought of: birds. This should not be interpreted as an alarmist post, but sometimes holiday decorations can cause harm to birds.
It’s unclear what sort of effect the light pollution from Christmas lights has on birds, but there is one decoration from Halloween that’s already trapped a few birds this year: fake spider webs.
Usually made from cotton all tangled together, fake spider webs occasionally mimic real spider webs and ensnare unexpected wildlife. While hummingbirds are usually the only birds that get caught in real spider webs, the large fake webs catch all types of bird, including owls.
Yesterday, the Golden Gate Audubon posted the image above on its Facebook page. The poor Screech Owl is completely tangled upside down in the web. Here’s more from the WildCare Bay Area site:
For this Western Screech Owl, the Halloween decorations on a Novato home weren’t just scary, they were life-threatening!
The Marin Humane Society responded to a call from homeowners saying that their artificial spider web had ensnared an accidental victim.
“He was hanging upside down right outside the front door,” the homeowner said. “When we opened the door he just hung there and blinked at us!”
Upon arrival at the home, the MHS officer gently snipped away the fibers that tied the little owl to the porch, and brought him, panting with stress and still ensnared in web, to WildCare.
Luckily, this owl only suffered for a little while and was ultimately released the next day after tests revealed it had no injuries.
The Chicago Bird Collisions Monitor also pointed out on its website that birds get tangled in Halloween spider webs and even loose holiday lights.
While you should definitely not let this sad news deter you from enjoying the holidays and decorating your yard, this should encourage you to be wildlife conscious when putting up decorations. A good rule of thumb is that if you think a bird can become tangled or trapped in something, don’t put it up. For more tips on making sure you have wildlife-friendly Halloween decorations, read the hints on WildCare’s website.
6 Comments
The WildCare link with tips for keeping decorations safe for wildlife does not work – could you re-post the link please?
I agree, my family usually does not decorate for Halloween, but for Christmas it is a good idea to have your Christmas lights secured tightly to your house.
Great point, Sam. Loose Christmas lights definitely pose a risk to birds, so you should install them tightly.