![\"Although](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Houston-10-1000x562.jpg\")
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Brenda Valdivia\/Houston Public Media<\/p>\n
Although some birdsong is soothing to the human ear, it may act as a warning system to other birds.<\/p>\n
\nThe Houston-Galveston region, nestled along major migratory flyways, hosts hundreds of species of birds each year\u2014some are just passing through, and others call it home. But, that diversity is threatened by rapid development, habitat loss, and environmental changes.<\/p>\n
Skyler Brown, Houston Audubon<\/a>\u2018s Bird-Friendly Communities Program Manager, joined Houston Matters producer Brenda Valdivia at the Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary<\/a> to discuss how to be conscientious about birds in our environment.<\/p>\n Brown shared that conservation efforts that don’t just happen in nature preserves; they begin in our backyards. The nature sanctuary provided a background of bird songs, in which Brown identified a variety of calls. You can watch and listen to some of them on the live Edith Moore Bird Cam<\/a>.<\/p>\n Brenda Valdivia\/Houston Public Media<\/p>\n Bird-Friendly Communities Program Manager Schyler Brown stands in front of three images taken at Houston Audubon\u2019s bird feeder, which attracts a variety of bird species that don’t typically gather together in the wild.<\/p>\n The key to saving local birds? Windows and plants.<\/strong> “Downward-facing lighting can help enormously,” Brown says. “So can retrofitting windows\u2014use stickers, UV-reflective glass, or even paint murals.” These efforts can be seasonal, and a fun and simple solution for bird-prepped windows is to paint on your windows with water-based paint. To achieve more conservative and stylish bird-saving window options, consider professional etching services.<\/a> <\/p>\n One of the most effective ways to help birds is deceptively simple: native gardening. “The number one cause of wildlife decline is habitat loss,” Brown explains. “Planting native species helps create food, shelter, and nesting areas not just for birds, but for the insects they rely on.”<\/p>\n A bird feeder stocked with seed might draw attention, but insects are the source of a healthy bird population. “Insects don’t feed off foreign plants,” Brown says. “If you go to a big box store and buy ornamental plants from Asia, local wildlife can’t use them.” <\/p>\n For those unsure where to begin, Brown recommends starting with a couple of native plants and visiting local nurseries for advice. The Houston Audubon has a list of bird-friendly native plants here<\/a>. You can also find additional native plant information at the Native Plant Society of Texas<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Brenda Valdivia\/Houston Public Media Although some birdsong is soothing to the human ear, it may act as a…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":73881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5130],"tags":[9971,25236,51574,19528,285,1213,4345,51575,16305,425,51576,12489,1759,50,3996,51577,358,3187,837],"class_list":{"0":"post-73880","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston","8":"tag-arts-culture","9":"tag-bird","10":"tag-bird-song","11":"tag-birds","12":"tag-climate-change","13":"tag-health-science","14":"tag-houston","15":"tag-houston-audubon","16":"tag-houston-matters","17":"tag-local","18":"tag-local-wildlife","19":"tag-migration","20":"tag-nature","21":"tag-news","22":"tag-shows","23":"tag-skyler-brown","24":"tag-texas","25":"tag-tx","26":"tag-wildlife"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114876792412111111","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Bird-Friendly](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Houston-9-1000x562.jpg\")
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Windows are particularly dangerous to birds and cause death in the billions, according to Brown. The angle and shine of a window can confuse a bird\u2019s sense of direction by creating a reflection of clear skies or landing objects that are behind them. <\/p>\n