Walker Glass and The National Aviary Continue their Tradition of Bird-friendly Building

This month, Walker will donate funds for major renovations to the Aviary’s glass-covered Wetlands habitat, a project also sponsored by Vitro Architectural Glass.

The new glass roof and walls will feature Walker Textures® full-surface Velour acid etch and AviProtek® organic pattern 214, all on Starphire Ultra-clear® glass from Vitro. This glazing will deter bird strikes from inside and out, protecting the Aviary’s birds as well as local avian populations. In addition, the low-iron Ultra-clear® glass will maximize natural light transmittance to promote healthy plant growth within the enclosure.

This will be the third National Aviary building to use Walker Glass bird-deterrent solutions. In 2018, the Tropical Rainforest habitat was renovated with Starphire Ultra-clear® glass with a first-surface Walker Textures® Velour finish. Two years later, architects Perfido Weiskopf Wagstaff + Goettel created The Garden Room, a light-filled reception venue whose large curtainwalls feature AviProtek® pattern 213 on surface one. This project achieved LEED® Gold certification, thanks in part to its bird-friendly glazing. Aviary staff have monitored both buildings for bird strikes since the time of construction and found zero evidence of collisions.

Congratulations to the National Aviary for this major restoration, and for their leadership in bird conservation!

Walker looks forward to continuing this tradition of bird-friendly building at the National Aviary. Donations like this one support the company’s commitment to bird-safe development, a commitment that is at the heart of Walker’s values. To learn more about our bird-friendly solutions, please visit the AviProtek® page.

About the National Aviary

The National Aviary is America’s only independent indoor non-profit zoo dedicated exclusively to birds. Located in Allegheny Commons Park on Pittsburgh’s historic North Side, the National Aviary’s diverse collection comprises more than 500 birds representing more than 150 species from around the world, many of them threatened or endangered in the wild. The National Aviary’s large walk-through exhibits create an experience unlike any other – an intimate, up-close interaction between visitors and free-flying birds, including opportunities to hand-feed and meet many species rarely found in zoos anywhere else in the world.

Learn more at aviary.org