Late summer into early fall brings about changing leaves, cooler temperatures and the beginning of a new school year. As students walk from South Belvoir Blvd. to the main campus, the sound of chirping birds prepares them for the upcoming day of classes.

So, it was a significant shock to students when dead birds started piling up outside of Campion Hall, leaving them feeling sad and confused.

Campion Hall Resident Assistant Lucy Peloso ‘21 filed a work order last week when she noticed one dead bird on her way to class. Peloso has lived in Campion since her freshman year and remembers the same situation happening last year.

“When I saw that first bird, all I kept thinking was ‘oh no not again,’” Peloso said in an interview. “By Wednesday, around five birds were outside, including the one from when I filed the work order. The one from the week prior looked stepped on and its feathers were assorted everywhere.”

Peloso received three emails back after filing the work order: one from someone working in maintenance who said the birds were dying because they fail to notice the windows, another from the Office of Residence Life that said it was the migratory patterns of the birds during this time of year and a third from the landscaper who picked up the birds.

“I feel like there is nothing to prevent this from happening,” Peloso said. “I think it’s the way the wind comes in. I am curious to see if there is an explanation for this strange occurrence.” 

Turfscape Inc. Field Manager Joseph Laduca was dispatched last week to pick up a bird, and again around 10 a.m. on Wednesday to collect some more.

“I was told this tends to happen every year around the same time,” Laduca said. “I just started on campus six weeks ago, and I’ll make sure to check for this around the same time next year.”

The cleanup process involves putting on gloves and disposing the birds in a tarp that then gets placed in the dumpster.

“I really don’t know what is causing these birds to die,” Laduca said. “They were small birds, so they could be learning to fly, or they could be flying into the building and not seeing that it’s a sharp corner.”

This theory is supported by many people in the building, including housekeeper Zima, who says this occurrence is nothing new.

“I’ve worked here for 13 years and see dead birds out there all the time,” she said. “It’s hard to say if this happens around the same time each year because I’ve seen so many. It usually happens when the weather is clear and always on the north side of this building.”

According to American Association for the Advancement of Science, three billion North American birds have vanished since 1970. That includes the typical, everyday sparrow, which raises concern. Without these birds, our own ecosystem could change drastically.

Associate Professor of Biology Dr. James Watling agrees with these findings, saying that the peak of fall migration is approaching, when many birds leave their breeding grounds in North America to stay the winter in Central and South America.

“During the spring and fall migration seasons, collisions with buildings are a major source of mortality for birds,” Watling said. “I would not be surprised if many of the birds people are seeing collided into Campion Hall during a rest stop on their southward migration.”

In an article by National Geographic ornithologist Greg Butcher, he explains that it is common for birds to fly into tall buildings that are constantly lit. Seeing as Campion Hall is always lit for safety reasons, this could be one possibility as to why birds might fly into the building, ultimately leading to their death.

Some students have not seen the birds themselves, but are still aware of the situation.

“I live on the end of the boys’ side and there is a stairway right by our room, but I never see them when I go that way,” said freshman Derek Russ. “I’ve gone out by the girls’ side and have seen multiple birds, even [with] their feathers sprawled out.”

Many residents are saddened and disturbed by the situation. Several students are concerned and hope this occurrence can be resolved soon.

“I don’t want my residents to be afraid or freak out because I think it’s just nature,” Peloso said. “It is saddening to see the dead birds, but hopefully we can get an explanation as to why this is happening.”