As representatives of the Safe Wings Ottawa’s sub-committee, Ottawa Field Naturalists Club (OFNC), we would like to recognize Anouk Hoedeman for her leadership, dedication and personal commitment to Safe Wings Ottawa, a program focused on bird collision research, prevention, and rescue.
Safe Wings was founded by Anouk in 2014 with several other concerned Ottawa citizens after a much-publicized mass collision event by Bohemian Waxwings at Ottawa City Hall. Initially started as a chapter of the Toronto-based FLAP (Fatal Light Attraction Program) in 2014, Safe Wings Ottawa later evolved into a separate organization that operates as a committee of the OFNC. What started as a core team of 15 dedicated volunteers has grown under Anouk’s leadership and direction to a team of more than 50 volunteers who are involved in monitoring buildings for bird collisions, driving injured birds to rehabilitation centres, collecting dead birds for research purposes, educating the public and business owners about the threats that windows and glass present to birds. Supported by the Ottawa Field Naturalists, this organization is completely volunteer based.
2020 was a banner year for Safe Wings thanks to Anouk’s leadership. After 6 years of consultation with City of Ottawa staff and councillors, Anouk’s determination paid off in March 2020 with the successful approval of the City of Ottawa’s development of Bird Safe Design Guidelines. Anouk also spearheaded another important document last year, the Ottawa Bird Strategy, which was written in collaboration with community and national partners: the Ottawa Field Naturalists, the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre (OVWBCC), Birds Canada, and Nature Canada. This document provides a road map for bird conservation efforts within the City of Ottawa. As we all faced the uncertainty of leaving our homes during the COVID-19 restrictions, Anouk provided volunteers and the public with assurance that we could still assist injured birds in a safe manner. As with the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre, Safe Wings continued to operate, and rescued a record number of injured birds in 2020.
Anouk’s involvement in every aspect of this program is very inspiring for those of us who work with her. In a typical day during spring and fall migrations, she awakes before dawn to medicate and feed birds on the third floor of her home, which has been transformed into a short-term rehabilitation centre set up with a variety of cages to accommodate and keep birds safe, warm, and fed until they can be released or transferred to the OVWBCC. Then she heads out on her bicycle to meet a team of volunteers who are patrolling the streets of downtown Ottawa. During the past 6 years of patrolling the streets of Ottawa, Anouk has developed many contacts for Safe Wings (security guards, custodians, and grounds keepers) and encourages other volunteers to do the same. Once her morning patrol is complete, she returns home to care for any new injured birds, accept birds coming from other parts of the city and arrange for transportation for others. Any free time is spent keeping the space clean, organized, stocked with supplies and ready for injured birds, which may arrive at any time. With any time that remains, Anouk is busy speaking with building owners and government officials and staff to push for bird-safe buildings and making Ottawa a safer place for birds.
Trained as journalist, Anouk is often called upon during migration to be the voice of Safe Wings. She is regularly interviewed in both English and French with local media outlets. Through continuous research and contact with partner agencies, she works with our communications team to ensure that we have timely articles and social media content that reflect new developments in bird collision research and current developments in the National Capital region.
In the off season, she works to ensure that our database of window collisions is complete, and the necessary reports have been sent to the Canadian Wildlife Service. She ensures that all collected birds are properly identified and safely kept in frozen storage for our annual display and eventual distribution to museums and researchers.
Safe Wings estimates that 250,000 birds collide with glass every year in Ottawa. Anouk and Safe Wings volunteers document about 3,000 to 4,000 of these — the rest go unnoticed or unreported. Many dead birds are eaten by scavengers or discarded, while many injured ones are taken predators or fly away to die elsewhere. Safe Wings also provides a hotline operated from 6:00 am to 10:00 pm every day that the public can call to report a dead or injured bird. As a result of the increased demand for Safe Wings services, Anouk assisted another volunteer in obtaining federal and provincial rehabilitation permits to provide medication, fluids, and other life-saving treatment to injured and sick birds in the eastern end of the city.
Safe Wings volunteers also conduct outreach activities, make presentations to various groups on preventing bird collisions, and provide advice on designing bird-friendly buildings and retrofitting existing buildings. Anouk’s personal efforts have resulted in the National Capital Commission, Public Services and Procurement Canada, the University of Ottawa and Carleton University adopting bird-friendly design approaches. Each year, more and more building owners are made aware of mitigation strategies and we are seeing an increase in buildings that are retrofitted. A small group of volunteers review planning applications and advocate for bird-friendly design at the development stage of new buildings.
Anouk is an extremely dedicated volunteer involved in every aspect of Safe Wings Ottawa. As a leader, she actively endeavors to transmit her knowledge and skills to others on her team. As a result, Safe Wings now has a second rehabber, an advocacy committee, and several new volunteers to answer our hotline. Our expanding volunteer base is monitoring buildings in Gatineau and at both Carleton University and the University of Ottawa.
As a result of Anouk’s efforts to promote Safe Wings through social media and traditional media outlets, Safe Wings is now widely recognized and receives thousands of calls every year for rescue support from individuals and organizations throughout Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec, including the City of Ottawa and the Ottawa Valley Wild Bird Care Centre.
We are pleased to nominate Anouk Hoedeman for her work in making Ottawa a more bird friendly city.
Supported by the following members of the Ottawa Field Naturalist Club, Safe Wings Ottawa Committee:
Amanda Dookie
Deborah Doherty
Janette Niwa
Sue Phillips
Willow English
