# A bird of prey collided with my window in the night
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [July 16, 2008, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666 "2008-07-16T10:03:03Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/1 "2008-07-16T10:03:03Z")
I slept right through it, but my wife says she heard a loud thump in the middle of the night. Inspecting the window, I can see the greasy, feathery outline of an owl’s face, head and upswept wings (it really is quite clear - I’ll see if I can snap a picture of it later).
I expected to find a dead bird underneath the window, but there’s no evidence of that. Since it survived, I hope it wasn’t badly injured.
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### Author:  [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/2 "2008-07-16T10:44:52Z")
Back in the mid 80s my boyfriend and I sat there in amazement as a hawk stooped into the window of the living room. We figure that something must have been reflected in the glass that was a prey bird or animal and … oops!
It laid there stunned for about 15 minutes, then sort of got up on its feet and huddled there for about half an hour, then sort of shakily flapped off … it probably had a headache like you wuld not believe!
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### Author:  [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/3 "2008-07-16T11:22:04Z")
I remember reading, years ago, some crackpottery about those imprints being left by the ‘ghost’ of the bird, since there’s no way those often amazingly detailed and seemingly three dimensional images could be left by ordinary grease, dust, and whatever else gunk birds carry around in their feathers… Of course, now I can’t find the site where I read that (the closest five minutes of googling brought up is [this](http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Pigeon.html)), but it just goes to show that there are people that have a supernatural explanation for even the most commonplace everyday things.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/4 "2008-07-16T11:32:07Z")
Wow. That image is very similar to the one on my window.
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### Author:  [@nd\_n8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nd_n8)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/5 "2008-07-16T12:32:34Z")
See, I though birds were rather cruchy things. I can see a profile but that pidgeon looks head on and face first. Do they somehow compress like a rubber stamp?
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### Author:  [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/6 "2008-07-16T13:52:54Z")
When I was working in a home center about 20 years ago, a Red Tailed Hawk flew into the store from an open receiving door in the back, and proceeded to head toward the windows at the front at a high rate of speed. It collided with a window that was very high up, breaking its neck. ☹ We had to have a game warden come in and verify that no one had purposefully killed it. It’s a shame. They are magnificent birds!
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### Author:  [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/7 "2008-07-16T15:00:05Z")
We had a hummingbird knock itself unconscious on one of our windows. We picked it up and put it on the sill to keep it up off the ground, and then got to watch it for several minutes while it recovered, checked its feathers and finally flew away.
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### Author:  [@JR\_Brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JR_Brown)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/8 "2008-07-16T19:03:03Z")
THe place I work has a little-used glass-walled bridge over to the clinical building next door. For several weeks last fall there was a _excellent_ full-body impression of a pigeon on the glass; wing feathers, tail feathers, all clearly visible. Coolest thing _evah_; I wish I had photographed it. I pointed it out to everyone I met on the bridge but nobody else seemed to care. ☹
JRB
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/9 "2008-07-16T19:40:33Z")
Alas, on closer examination, the imprint on my glass is a pigeon, not an owl - the rosette of feathers I had taken to be the face was in fact the breast (with the breastbone looking like the imprint of the beak).
I’ve taken some pictures, but it’s really hard as the image is confounded by background detail - I’d try hanging a dark cloth behind it, but the window is on the first floor.
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### Author:  [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/10 "2008-07-16T19:48:25Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout]
Alas, on closer examination, the imprint on my glass is a pigeon, not an owl - the rosette of feathers I had taken to be the face was in fact the breast (with the breastbone looking like the imprint of the beak).
I’ve taken some pictures, but it’s really hard as the image is confounded by background detail - I’d try hanging a dark cloth behind it, but the window is on the first floor.
[/QUOTE]
Huh. I’m surprised a pigeon would even be flying at night.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/11 "2008-07-16T19:53:06Z")
Me too. What’s abundantly clear is that _flying at night didn’t work out so well for it_.
Maybe it was startled out of its roost by something (not sure what, because that would have been quite a tall oak tree - certainly not readily accessible to domestic cats).
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### Author:  [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/12 "2008-07-16T20:12:15Z")
This is the time of year that young birds are out trying to figure out that whole “being on my own” thing and raptors seem especially numbskulled during the process. A few years ago a young redtail hawk swooped down and took a pigeon right in front of my SO, not five feet away from him and between him and a six foot tall fence–silly bird had a really tough time getting out of those close quarters with his catch! Yesterday as I was driving home I saw another young raptor, couldn’t tell what kind although I’d guess either redtail or rough-legged hawk (can’t find good pix of juvenile plumage offhand but the size and beak were right) come in for a very inept landing on a slanted freeway cut. He looked very unused to that whole “flying/landing” concept and nearly crashed from the air currents kicked up by passing vehicles. I’m just glad he didn’t get hit.
I’ve had cockatiels leave those silly window prints once or twice–luckily it’s difficult in an average sized room for a bird to get up enough speed to break its neck.
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### Author:  [@Maui\_Lion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maui_Lion)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/13 "2008-07-16T20:17:40Z")
I remember one night when I was younger, my mom and I were in her car heading back home when a large owl suddenly swooped in out of nowhere and collided with our windshield. It wasn’t killed or anything, as it did fly off, but there were feathers everywhere.
After a stunned second of “what the HELL?”, we cracked up laughing. It was just so out of nowhere, and you rarely see owls here.
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### Author:  [@user\_hostile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/user_hostile)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/14 "2008-07-16T20:53:48Z")
Living outside of Escondido, I went out to my second story landing and found four dead California Quail lying at the foot of the sliding glass door. One male and three females. At first, I thought my crazy neighbor shot 'em (Assholian thought it would be a good idea to light a trash fire during a Santa Ana gale. He was later blessed with an arrest and property seizure by the feds for growing pot. Nobody shed a tear). I later figured they were spooked by a red-tail or a turkey vulture. I collected them and left for the coyotes.
Beautiful animals ☹
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/15 "2008-07-17T08:37:06Z")
I tried photographing the image and it’s very frustrating, because it’s almost impossible to capture the detail and nuances of the image. It came out a little better on video, because the movement makes it easier to separate the image from the background - and I inexpertly sketched it too.
[http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/bump\_in\_the\_night](http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/bump_in_the_night)
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### Author:  [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/16 "2008-07-17T08:43:06Z")
One of the places at which I worked had such a problem with collisions that they put little stickers on the glass panels - just enough to give the birds a clue.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/17 "2008-07-17T08:47:56Z")
My daughter asked me what I’d have done if I had found the bird dead in the front garden. I rolled my eyes. “what do you _think_ I’d do with a dead pigeon. Honestly.”
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### Author:  [@nd\_n8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nd_n8)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/18 "2008-07-17T10:58:33Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout]
My daughter asked me what I’d have done if I had found the bird dead in the front garden. I rolled my eyes. “what do you _think_ I’d do with a dead pigeon. Honestly.”
[/QUOTE]
Well, that would have taken care of item number six on your list 😛
I can’t wait to get home this afternoon to see the video, the sketch looks pretty cool.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/19 "2008-07-17T11:05:01Z")
The video is a bit of a disappointment, to be perfectly honest. The damn thing is just impossible to capture photographically. If Jesus or the Virgin Mary ever crash into my window, I’m going to have a terrible time proving it.
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### Author:  [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2008, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-bird-of-prey-collided-with-my-window-in-the-night/456666/20 "2008-07-17T11:45:06Z")
[QUOTE=Maui Lion]
I remember one night when I was younger, my mom and I were in her car heading back home when a large owl suddenly swooped in out of nowhere and collided with our windshield. It wasn’t killed or anything, as it did fly off, but there were feathers everywhere.
After a stunned second of “what the HELL?”, we cracked up laughing. It was just so out of nowhere, and you rarely see owls here.
[/QUOTE]
Where is “here”? Owls are probably more common than many people realize, even in fairly urbanized areas. Since they are mostly active at night and cryptically colored it isn’t surprising people don’t see them often.
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