Hawk called Chocolate latest victim of Portland school’s design

A beloved hawk named Chocolate was injured after hitting a renovated high school window that has become a nightmare for birds. 

Chocolate is believed to have flown into the glᴀss windows at McDaniel High School in Portland, Oregon, earlier this month, causing him to need rehabilitation at a local wildlife center. 

The high school renovated its building between 2019 and 2021, including adding an addition of large glᴀss windows along the Northeast 82nd Avenue side, which is now attracting birds who mistake it for the sky. 

Buildings that do not deploy bird-safe technology, such as decals, can be dangerous to birds, with roughly one billion birds per year colliding with buildings in the US, according to a 2020 report by the Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. 

The Bird Alliance of Oregon, which runs the Wildlife Care Center and is treating Chocolate, said bird injuries due to window strikes are up 20 percent this year, The Oregonian said. 

‘We do our best to try to educate about how to prevent window strikes with either stickers or paint on your windows and various ways to make sure the birds can see where they’re going and where the buildings are before,’ Travis Koons, director of the Bird Alliance, told KOIN. 

Since Chocolate’s injury, Opsis Architecture, the firm that redesigned the high school, has reached out to the Bird Alliance for suggestions on how to bird-proof the windows, The Oregonian reported. 

Koons identified the windows as a potential issue with the school’s design. 

A hawk named Chocolate is believed to have been injured after colliding with McDaniel High School’s glᴀss wall of windows earlier this month 

‘[Opsis is] somewhat responsible for the design. They partnered with the school district, and so now, if they’re finding that it’s causing harm, they are concerned about trying to fix it, and they are taking recommendations,’ he told the paper. 

‘Then it goes to the contractor, and then it’s up to the school to see if they approve the costs.’ 

Heather DeGrella, a spokesperson for the firm, told the outlet that the business is looking into ways to avoid danger for birds and find ways for the school district to explore those options. 

The school is located in Northeast Portland, which does not have to follow the city’s bird-safe glazing rules, The Oregonian reported. 

The Bird Alliance is also particularly worried about the school’s windows, as it purchased property across the street for a bird sanctuary in 2024.

Due to proximity, Koons expects birds will continue to get injured if the windows are not fixed. 

As for Chocolate, he is still recovering in the care of the Wildlife Care Center, which is hoping to release him within the next month. 

Travis Koons, with the Bird Alliance, identified the wall of windows as a hazard to birds. The school’s architecture firm is looking at ways to mitigate the potential of harm 

Prior to the renovation, the school did not have a large wall of windows 

‘He will be moving to our larger flight pens soon, where we’ll make sure he’s got the flight muscles he needs,’ Koons said. 

‘After some time and care, about 20 days, we’re going to be moving him to release, which is always the goal with all of our patients.’ 

The Daily Mail has reached out to the Wildlife Care Center, McDaniel High School, and Opsis Architecture for comment.