Dive Brief:

• California cities are often the first in the country to embrace new building standards to protect health and safety. The latest: San Jose has become the fourth municipality in the Golden State to adopt a building ordinance aimed at saving birds.

• The official Bird-Safe Building Design Standards in San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland and Sunnyvale call on contractors to minimize large areas of transparent or reflective glass; avoid transparent glass skyways, walkways and free-standing glass walls; place landscaping near glass to reduce reflection; and eliminate up-lighting and spotlights on buildings. The guidelines will be applied on a voluntary basis.

• Between 365 million and 988 million birds die every year when they fly into glass, according to reports. Birds apparently are unable to distinguish between the reflection of trees and sky and the real things, so they believe their path is clear.

Dive Insight:

Bird safety also has vexed contractors building the new Minnesota Vikings stadium, which was designed with 200,000 square feet of clear glass. Replacing that glass with panes that are visible to birds could add up to $60 million to the cost of construction, a state official estimated.