Singapore is a dangerous place for birds, but a movement is stirring.

A hotspot for bird-window collisions
Singapore is highly urbanized, yet densely vegetated, so many small pockets of bird habitat lie adjacent to built-up areas with large expanses of glass and much artificial lighting at night. For a small country, Singapore has a great diversity of resident bird species; it also sits within a major migratory route, the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, through which a wide variety of migratory species flies twice each year. Moreover, Singapore is surrounded by water, so migrating birds naturally stop to refuel before crossing the straits. Once they set down, the chances of becoming lost and confused within a maze of mirrored buildings increase sharply. For all these reasons, Singapore is a high-risk area for bird-window collisions.

It is impossible to ascertain the number of window collisions occurring in Singapore each year, as most collisions go unnoticed and/or unreported. But it's safe to say the number is too high.

Local ornithologists study the issue

In 2017, a group of local scientists, led by Dr Yong Ding Li of BirdLife International, published a paper on bird-window collisions in Singapore -- the first such study for Southeast Asia.  The paper attracted media coverage and raised public awareness across the region.

Dr David Tan, one of Yong's co-authors, has gone on to publish more on the topic, including a recent study on the effects of blue light pollution on night-flying migrants. The study identifies future high-risk areas for bird collisions based on the Singapore government's medium-term land-use plan. In an interview with The Straits Times, Tan explains that bird-window collisions are not just a matter of animal welfare: "From a public health standpoint,  we also want to minimize the amount of contact people have with dead wild animals."

Partly as a result of such studies, NParks issued its Bird-safe Building Guidelines in 2022. It is a big step forward for Singapore's City in Nature goals, although the guidelines do not seem to be widely publicized.

Even so, awareness of the issue is growing. The Dead Bird Hotline logged 650 reports in 2025, a fivefold growth from 2020, when the hotline was launched. 

Local activists lead the way

In 2022, a team of students at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) formed Project Avigate, Singapore's first citizen-led advocacy group calling for the prevention of bird-window collisions. Horrified by the number of dead and injured birds they were finding at the School of Art, Media and Design (SADM), the students began daily collision monitoring to document the toll that the building was taking on resident and migratory birdlife. Supported by scientists, architects and environmentalists, the team has grown to include more than 50 volunteers. As of December 2025, Project Avigate has raised more than $60,000  to retrofit the SADM building with collision-deterrent window film -- an impressive achievement in just two months. For its part, the NTU administration has agreed to match the funds raised. Kudos all around!

Public outcry results in swift action by LTA and NParks

In November 2025, a man named Jimmy Tan was on his morning bike ride in the Dairy Farm area of Upper Bukit Timah when he noticed a pink-necked green pigeon lying dead at the base of a bus stop that was enclosed in glass panels. While reporting the bird to the Dead Bird Hotline, he saw three Asian glossy starlings crash into the glass. He posted a video (below) about the collisions to social media, generating a public outcry against the pointless harm caused to birds.

Within a few days of Mr Tan's post, the LTA, working jointly with NParks, applied frosted strips to the glass panels at the bus stop. This remarkably swift response shows that Singapore agencies are ready and willing to act on their own bird-safe guidelines, especially with a nudge from the public!

Tip of the iceberg

There are undoubtedly many other buildings in Singapore that kill numerous birds each year, but without anyone to notice and care enough about the harm done to birds, these buildings (many of which may be private residences) might not be recognized as collision hotspots. Scientists, students and ordinary citizens have all played a part in bringing this issue to Singaporeans' attention -- it's now up to the rest of us to prove we care as well.

Make your windows bird-safe today.